Quality over quantity is an idea that seems to have lost its value. In the film industry, directors would rather have a large amount of views, brought in by talentless celebrities, over a quality-made movie. It gives them more viewers for higher prices, but gives us worse quality. For some odd reason, it has become more common to see people who are not actors in films, including singers and athletes for the sole reason of getting attention.
In the newly released movie Hustlers directed by Lorene Scafaria, Cardi B is featured in a lead role, even though her fame comes from music. Sure, watching the movie could have been a blast, but it was obvious that she is a singer, not an actress. Having no professional background in acting and giving her an important role was a risky move. Most actors go through the audition process so that directors can see if they are capable of playing the role but, in rare occasions, well known actors will have a “free pass”because they are famous from another profession.
In this case, Cardi was personally asked to be in the film, Scafaria claims to have chased after her for about 2 years. The only television experience Cardi has really had was being on the reality TV show Love & HipHop: New York. Which is generally real reactions and lightly scripted for dramatic reasons. Scafaria also includes actors like G-Eazy and Usher.
In the live action film of The Lion King, directed by Jonathan Favreau, the same problem presents itself. In the original cartoon Lion King, Nala’s character is important, but certainly not the star. Simba, his father Mufasa, and the villain Scar are the leads in the film. In the live action version, Nala has a much bigger role due to the actress playing her, Beyonce.
Although Beyonce has past acting experience, this is no excuse to inflate the role of her character. Other characters should be prioritized over Nala’s character, despite being Beyonce. Rotten Tomatoes, the critic organization that rates, gave the live action movie a 53%. Claiming this version is more Shakespearean then intended and that it lacks the heart of the original. The one thing which could very well be due to not having “actual” actors.
