Not-So-Private Lives

In this day and age, there is no such thing as 'privacy' for A-listers in Hollywood. The personal lives of almost every celebrity worth writing about are plastered all over the tabloids, with readers paying little attention to the actor's actual work. 

The Boston Herald wrote this article about the impact that actors' personal lives have on the marketing of his/her most recently completed film. Using Owen Wilson's suicide attempt and Ryan Phillippe's divorce-prompting affair, the article highlights the problem that movie marketers face when publicizing films with leading stars plagued with controversy. Films like "Drillbit Taylor" and "Stop Loss" depend on the star-power of the leading actors to boost ticket sales opening weekend, but is it realistic to go see a comedy starring funny-man Owen Wilson when you know he's so depressed that he tried to kill himself? Do you really want to sit through two hours of Ryan Phillippe showing on-screen affection to the woman that broke up his marriage to Reese Witherspoon?

The marketers of these films decided it would be best to promote the movies as if they had no stars in them, as opposed to stars with major real-life problems. 

It is an unfortunate situation for all parties involved, but with movie marketing, taking risks is never a reliable option.