Saturday, December 15, 2007

Will Smith, the new Jimmy Stewart


Before.........................................After.


I've written before of my admiration for Will Smith, and now Mr. Smith can safely say he is the biggest movie star in the world. His newest movie, I Am Legend, opened yesterday to a $30 million dollar gross, with box-office projections expected to top $80 million for the weekend. That will set a record for top December releases, surpassing King Kong and the previous record-holder The Lord Of The Rings.

What's so amazing about Will Smith is that he is the only major star who appeals across the entire demographic board. He's equally popular with whites, blacks, and hispanics, and with males, females, young people and adults. The only guy I remember who had that kind of mass market appeal, and the combination of artistic and financial success, was the great James Stewart.

Perhaps Will Smith is the new Everyman for the 21st century? He seems to find a balance between meaningful films and those with major box-office appeal. Summer tends to be the season for big blockbuster movies and in fall we see smaller, more artistic ones. Will Smith believes in combining those two markets and so far he's very successful at it.

Read more here: http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/will-smith-can-now-say-i-am-legend-30m-friday-debut-70m-weekend/

3 comments:

Danielle said...

I've always been a HUGE Will Smith fan...at least in his post "Fresh Prince" days.
How's the donut makin' going?
D.

scottydude said...

Hey D,

All is well in donut-ville....thanks for posting!

Danielle said...

OH wait! Your birthday....wasn't it the 18th?!? Happy Birthday!!!! If I were still in CA, I'd show up at your house with a Dunkin' dozen and a candle right in the middle.
Happy belated!