IMDB Top 10 Stars of 2015

Top 10 Stars of 2015

by IMDb-Editors | last updated - 16 hours ago

As the year comes to a close, we present the Top 10 Stars of 2015 on IMDb.

Here's how we arrived at our list: We looked at the 10 stars who consistently ranked the highest on the IMDb weekly STARmeter chart throughout 2015. IMDb STARmeter rankings are based on the actual page views of IMDb's more than 250 million unique monthly visitors.— Arno Kazarian

10

Lily James

2015 was full of princess moments for the charismatic Lily James — especially when it didn't work out for Amanda Seyfried to star in Cinderella and James emerged from a crowded field of actresses with the part. Combine that new-girl intrigue with a live-action fairy tale that made more than a half-billion dollars worldwide, and a new star is truly born.

Look for Lily to expand her fan base as Elizabeth Bennet in the upcoming Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

9

Rosamund Pike

We were still reeling from Gone Girl well into 2015. Other reasons why Rosamund Pike was on our minds through the beginning of the year: She was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Oscar for her portrayal of the wickedly scheming Amy Dunne. It was a breakout year for the actress who has been working steadily since the late '90s, and the shocking trailer forReturn to Sender, a thriller that was released to capitalize on her newfound popularity, kept her atop the list of the most popular actresses on IMDb.

8

Bryce Dallas Howard

When you hold your own against Chris Pratt in the biggest box-office hit of the year and endure the bright, hot lights of controversy about Jurassic World's gender politics, you can pretty much guarantee yourself a spot on this list. Bryce Dallas Howard is on board for theJurassic World sequel, and next time maybe she can run in sneakers instead of high heels — or the heels will be twice as tall and she'll be paid the same amount as Pratt.

7

Rebecca Ferguson

We've said this before: The action of Mission Impossible - Rogue Nation was all Tom Cruise. Its story, however, was all about Rebecca Ferguson, who segued from "The White Queen" andHercules to M:I 5 and really made us want to buy a motorcycle. We like to think that one of the reasons she was so popular on IMDb this year has something to do with the fact thatRogue Nation's trailers and clips didn't reveal Ilsa's affiliations or true intentions.

6

Shailene Woodley

While Insurgent, the sequel to Divergent that brought Shailene Woodley back to the role of Tris Prior, matched the success of its predecessor, Shailene proved to be one of the most potent young movie stars and celebrities around with her IMDb popularity.

Snowden was first set for an awards-baiting release this year, but now we'll have to wait until the 2016 summer movies season to see her portray Lindsay Mills, Edward Snowden's girlfriend, alongside Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The controversy regarding all things Snowden has kept Shailene in the news, too.

Just as vital as her movie roles, Shailene's eco-conscious approach to living has made her one of the most refreshing performers around.

5

Alexandra Daddario

Prior to her supporting role in San Andreas, you'd probably first remember Alexandra Daddario from the first season of "True Detective." Teens know her from her appearances in the two Percy Jackson movies and her starring role in Texas Chainsaw 3D.

San Andreas, a massive worldwide hit, was an atypical action movie in some ways; it was cool to see how resourceful Alexandra's character, Blake, was in times of crisis. She cobbled together her own phone service when all cell towers were down and kept her two Brit-boy companions safe until it was Hero Time for Dwayne Johnson.

Combine Blake's strength with Alexandra's overall appeal, and it's easy to see why she's not only on this list but also currently in the running for several starring roles in big upcoming movies, including a reunion with The Rock in the Baywatch remake coming in 2017.

4

Dakota Johnson

Fifty Shades of Grey stirred up so much attention that you might've forgotten that Dakota Johnson had a principal role in Black Mass this year as well.

Aside from her talent, ability to land major roles, and refreshing red-carpet candor, there's another thing that enhances her IMDb popularity: there will always be people who have just learned she's Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson's daughter and want to know more about her.

3

Margot Robbie

After her captivating performance in The Wolf of Wall Street, Margot Robbie went indie and brunette with a co-lead role in the post-apocalyptic drama Z for Zachariah featuring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Chris Pine, and lots of increasingly frightening love-triangle dynamics. Then cameFocus with Will Smith, which stalled a bit in the U.S. but did just fine worldwide.

Her upcoming reunion with Will Smith should fare better: Margot is playing Harley Quinn (aka Dr. Harleen F. Quinzel) in Suicide Squad. Nothing much to see here except The Joker's tortured lover who has a major beef with Batman. We think Harley is primed to have a lasting effect on movie audiences, much more so than any of her recent villainous counterparts in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

2

Emilia Clarke

The fifth season of "Game of Thrones" ended with Daenerys Targaryen in a serious Dothraki situation, and we had already followed Emilia Clarke's fan-favorite character through 10 harrowing episodes that stress-tested her Queendom.

Meanwhile, even if Terminator: Genisys wasn't the "prequel-sequel-reboot-spelling error" we hoped for (thank you, Screen Junkies, for that expertly phrased description), the thought of Emilia playing Sarah Connor did not bother us one bit on paper.

Oh, and Esquire named her the "Sexiest Woman of the Year" — which will result in some serious Internet searches.

1

Tom Hardy

Mad Max: Fury Road might have been all about Imperator Furiosa, but IMDb's audience can't get enough of Tom Hardy. Clearly, all the anticipation for MM:FR and its subsequent success are the main reasons he tops our list, but there's also a tremendous amount of interest in his upcoming movie Legend, where he plays both Ronald and Reggie Kray in a dual-role performance and which looks to be the definitive story of the identical twin gangster duo. Sneaking in at the end of the year for an Oscar-qualifying release is The Revenant, which will pit Tom against Leonardo DiCaprio in a brutal-looking tale of revenge and redemption set in the uncharted American wilderness.

A final note on his popularity: In a time when leading men can wear bushy beards and even carry an extra pound or two, few actors out there do it better than Mr. Hardy. He's also the lone man on our list!

The Man From U.N.C.L.E and Mad Max are the first of a long list of films that are set to be revisited by Hollywood

Why is Hollywood hooked on re-makes? The Man From U.N.C.L.E and Mad Max are the first of a long list of films that are set to be revisited

• Film industry is obsessed with remaking classics and 1980s blockbusters
• Movie version of Sixties hit TV series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. is out now
• Follows release of spin-offs Mad Max: Fury Road and Terminator: Genisys
• Long list of remakes are due to be released like Ghostbusters and Scarface

By CHRISTOPHER STEVENS FOR DAILY MAIL

PUBLISHED: 23:32, 20 August 2015 | UPDATED: 07:27, 21 August 2015

Big hair, bigger shoulders and mobile phones the size of a breeze block — who’d want to to turn the clock back a couple of generations?

Hollywood, that’s who. The film industry is suddenly obsessed with remaking the classics that enthralled our parents and grandparents.

Guy Ritchie’s movie version of Sixties hit TV series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. starring Henry Cavill as superspy Napoleon Solo, is out now, and, fast-forwarding to the Eighties, just about every box-office smash of the Reagan/Thatcher years, whether thriller, chiller or comedy, is ripe for revisiting.

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1964: Robert Vaughn and Luciana Paluzzi in the TV original of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (left) 2015: Armie Hammer and Alicia Vikander in the new film (right)

This year has already seen the release of Mad Max: Fury Road and Terminator: Genisys, both spin-offs from archetypal Eighties blockbusters.

And there’s much more to come. Chris Columbus, who wrote the original Gremlins movie and, three decades on, is directing its reinvention, believes he has identified what makes remakes so successful: ‘They touch into that emotional connection we have with our past.’

In other words, we loved these films once and we’re ready to love them all over again.

One of the most important factors is a guest appearance by an original star. A remake feels almost like a rip-off without the stamp of approval an elderly A-lister can bring. Witness the excitement earlier this year when Harrison Ford as Han Solo, and sidekick Chewbacca turned up in the trailer for the reboot of 1977’s Star Wars.

1981: Mel Gibson starred as Mad Max in the original movie (left) 2015: Tom Hardy donned the leathers for this year's Mad Max: Fury Road remake (right)

Tom Hardy and Nicholas Hoult star in explosive Mad Max trailer

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But it’s the Eighties and early Nineties that exert maximum fascination — partly because the teen audiences of that era generally have teenagers of their own now, making these films into family events.

The irony is that 30 years ago, nobody with any self-respect made sequels or remakes . . . or paid to see them.

But in the past decade, 90 per cent of the most popular films have been based on earlier movies, comic books or novels. It seems no one in Hollywood now has an original notion in their heads.

Good job there are so many great ideas to be plundered from the past.

Blade Runner (1982)

Blade Runner (1982): Harrison Ford describes the sequel’s script as ‘the best thing I’ve ever read’

Harrison Ford describes the sequel’s script as ‘the best thing I’ve ever read’.

Set 30 years after the original story, little has been revealed about the plot — but robot-hunter Rick Deckard (Ford) is not expected to appear until the climax of the film.

So far the only actor confirmed apart from Ford is Ryan Gosling. Director Ridley Scott has handed over to French-Canadian Denis Villeneuve, while the cinematographer is one of the most respected in Hollywood, Roger Deakins.

He’s steeped in movie imagery, and he will need to be because Blade Runner’s flying cars, rain-soaked electronic billboards and billowing smoke were all achieved in an era before computer graphics, and still look convincing.

Release date: Filming starts in 2016.

Ghostbusters (1984)

Ghostbusters (1984): Who ya gonna call? Not Bill Murray and his original slapstick parapsychologists

Ghostbusters (2015): The new stars are Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, Melissa McCarthy and Kate McKinnon.Director Paul Feig is promising to rein in the comedy and deliver a more frightening, horror-filled movie

Who ya gonna call? Not Bill Murray and his original slapstick parapsychologists. Next year a feminist reboot of the spooky comedy will feature four women as the hapless raygun-toting scientists.

The new stars are Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, Melissa McCarthy and Kate McKinnon.Director Paul Feig is promising to rein in the comedy and deliver a more frightening, horror-filled movie. Creator Dan Ackroyd has confirmed a cameo role.

Clearly, that won’t be enough to satisfy him, because earlier this year Ackroyd announced he was in talks about producing another remake — with a squad of male Ghostbusters.

Never mind ‘Who ya gonna call?’, which ya gonna watch?

Release date: July 22, 2016.

Gremlins (1984)

Gremlins (1984): The rules are the same: if you have a pet Mogwai, never expose it to sunlight, never get it wet and, no matter how it begs, never feed it after midnight — or it will turn into a Gremlin.

The rules are the same: if you have a pet Mogwai, never expose it to sunlight, never get it wet and, no matter how it begs, never feed it after midnight — or it will turn into a Gremlin. Inevitably, the boy who gets a Mogwai for Christmas in this remake breaks the rules.

Original writer Chris Columbus is directing the sequel, set 30 years on, with the involvement of producer Steven Spielberg. Zach Gilligan, who played Billy, the boy whose fluffy, big-eared pet wreaked havoc, wants a role, too.

The new Gremlins is unlikely to rely wholly on CGI. Columbus has said the charm and energy of the original stemmed from the ‘sense of anarchy the creatures had, because behind the scenes are 25 puppeteers making them come to life’.

Release date: To be announced.

It (1990)

It (1990): The original was not a film but a two-part TV serial. Pennywise The Dancing Clown was played by Tim Curry

Stephen King tweeted in May he feared the remake of arguably his scariest story, starring demonic clown Pennywise, would never be released: director Carey Fukunaga had just quit.

But like Pennywise himself, the movie refuses to die, and director Andy Muschietti has now been assigned.

Like many remakes, this version is set 30 years on — but the characters have lost their memories, and can remember nothing about the gory summer when they ganged up to fight the supernatural serial killer dismembering children.

The original was not a film but a two-part TV serial. Pennywise The Dancing Clown was played by Tim Curry.

Release date: To be announced.

Police Academy (1984)

Police Academy (1984): The coarse, raucous Police Academy series is sometimes called America’s Carry Ons. But the plots were much less varied: an incompetent bunch of recruits cause bedlam as they try to prove themselves

The coarse, raucous Police Academy series is sometimes called America’s Carry Ons. But the plots were much less varied: an incompetent bunch of recruits cause bedlam as they try to prove themselves.

Biggest name in the franchise was Steve Guttenberg. Now sketch-show comics Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele will star. The story is expected to see some original cast return, to train a new generation.

Release date: To be announced.

Commando (1985)

Commando (1985): Arnold Schwarzenegger starred as a retired special forces soldier waging a one-man war against South American revolutionaries who had kidnapped his daughter

Arnold Schwarzenegger starred as a retired special forces soldier waging a one-man war against South American revolutionaries who had kidnapped his daughter.

It was ultra-violent, and one of the first movies to foresee the future of action movies lay in fighting terrorists.

A reboot has been on the cards for five years. One script, completed in 2011, is said to be even more violent than the original. Another, according to writer David Ayer, features a hero who is ‘less brawny, but more skilled in covert tactics and weaponry’. Tom Cruise, perhaps — but not Arnie.

Release date: To be announced.

Scarface (1983)

Scarface (1983): Al Pacino played the Cuban crime baron, in a role that was itself a remake — Scarface No 1 was Paul Muni, in 1932. The Brian de Palma version, written by Oliver Stone, also made a star of Michelle Pfeiffer, playing Tony’s wife, Elvira

Tony Montana’s final line in this gory, drug-crazed classic might be the most quoted in cinema history: ‘Say hello to my little friend!’

Al Pacino played the Cuban crime baron, in a role that was itself a remake — Scarface No 1 was Paul Muni, in 1932.

The Brian de Palma version, written by Oliver Stone, also made a star of Michelle Pfeiffer, playing Tony’s wife, Elvira.

Writer Jonathan Herman is working on a remake, and Pacino claims he is unbothered: ‘It’s fine, it’s interesting,’ he says. ‘It’s part of what we do — we remake things.’

Release date: To be announced.

Point Break (1991)

Point Break (1991): The ultimate surfing movie starred Patrick Swayze as Bodhi, a bank robber with a passion for riding giant waves, and Keanu Reeves as Johnny Utah, the FBI agent on his trail

The ultimate surfing movie starred Patrick Swayze as Bodhi, a bank robber with a passion for riding giant waves, and Keanu Reeves as Johnny Utah, the FBI agent on his trail.

The movie was an instant cult classic, and it is surprising the remake has not attracted bigger stars. Luke Bracey from Home And Away will play Utah, while Venezuelan actor Edgar Ramirez is Bodhi.

Release date: December 25.

Sister Act (1992)

Sister Act (1992): Whoopi Goldberg had her biggest hit as a singer who hides from a mafia boss in a convent. Maggie Smith is the Mother Superior who is horrified when Whoopi turns her choir into a rock ’n’ roll gospel band

Trailer for Whoopi Goldberg comedy classic Sister Act

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Whoopi Goldberg had her biggest hit as a singer who hides from a mafia boss in a convent. Maggie Smith is the Mother Superior who is horrified when Whoopi turns her choir into a rock ’n’ roll gospel band.

Disney has bought the rights, and the writers of Legally Blonde, Kirsten Smith and Karen McCullah, are reinventing the story. It isn’t known if Whoopi will join the cast, but the chances of Dame Maggie getting involved seem thinner than a communion wafer.

Release date: To be announced.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3205334/Why-Hollywood-hooked-makes-man-U-N-C-L-E-Mad-Max-long-list-films-set-revisited.html#ixzz3l5FCcEsR
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