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SALT LAKE CITY -- For two performers, 2011 was the year every Hollywood hopeful dreams of. With over 20 films between them, Michael Fassbender and Jessica Chastain kept themselves busy working on films like “The Help,” “X-Men: First Class,” “Tree of Life,” and “Jane Eyre.”
Both actors had enjoyed success before 2011, but last year was that moment when everything clicked — everyone wanted Fassbender and Chastain to be part of their project, and every project they were part of was better off because of them.
This year introduces a new group of performers with the potential to make 2012 their year. Events are lining up for the world to notice them, and depending on how they play their cards, that could be a very good thing.
Until December of 2011, no one knew the name Jeremy Irvine. Sure he was on some obscure British Disney television show for a bit, but it was Steven Spielberg’s “War Horse” that premiered Irvine to the world, and for the most part, he was received with kind reviews.
Unfortunately, “War Horse” never found its audience. Spielberg was hoping the heartwarming marketing about a boy and his horse would connect with Christmas moviegoers, but Irvine didn’t really make the splash he probably expected when being cast by one of the most successful directors in history. What Irvine did do however, was prove that he could carry a film.
With critics already inclined to like him, and projects such as “Great Expectations” and “The Railway Man” starting to come together, Irvine is set for 2012 to push him from "that kid in 'War Horse'" to an actor film geeks bring up when dream casting the films they hope one day get made.
Andrew Garfield has actually been around for a while, and though recognizable, people are starting to learn his name for one reason —"The Amazing Spider-Man."
Sure he was a major player in “The Social Network,” and he had a substantial role in Heath Ledger’s final movie, “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” but 2012 will be the year Andrew Garfield becomes a household name, and that’s not necessarily a good thing. In a way, Garfield is betting his entire career on this summer’s reboot of “The Amazing Spider-Man.”
The amount of talent Sony is throwing at the new web-head adventure should be reassuring, but for some reason, fans aren’t warming up to a new Peter Parker story — and Garfield is taking a lot of the heat.
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If the picture fails, Garfield will probably march into history as “the guy who ruined Spider-Man.”
But this could also be Garfield’s moment. There was a lot wrong with Sam Raimi’s previous “Spider- Man” trilogy, and Garfield is a talented actor, working with an especially talented team.
There’s potential for this project to be great in spite of the vocal cynics. Hopefully, 2012 will be the year Garfield makes the world forget about the emo-dancing-cry-baby Peter Parker we got in the last “Spider-Man” movie.
“The Amazing Spider Man” could do for Garfield what “X-Men: First Class” did for Fassbender.
Another performer people may know, but are far more likely to recognize than talk about, Jennifer Lawrence will have her moment in 2012 because of the highly anticipated “The Hunger Games.”
It’s not that Lawrence hasn’t already enjoyed a successful career, having won several awards for her work in “Winter’s Bone,” but like Garfield, this will be the year people know her by name. But unlike Garfield, a lackluster performance with “The Hunger Games” probably won’t ruin her already critically recognized reputation.
A few months following “The Hunger Games,” Lawrence will headline with Robert De Niro and Bradley Cooper in “The Silver Linings Playbook,” a project probably being pushed to the end of the year for awards consideration.
If “The Hunger Games” doesn’t really work as a motion picture, Lawrence has "Playbook" in her back pocket for yet another chance to wow audiences before 2012 blows away. If both “The Hunger Games” and “The Silver Linings Playbook” find their audiences, this could be that breakthrough year for Lawrence, and everything in her resume so far suggests she has the talent to make that happen.
IMDB does not have a single project listed for Shailene Woodley in 2012, and up until 2011, Woodley was known only for her role in the less than amazing TV teen drama “The Secret Life of the American Teenager.”
So why will 2012 be the breakout year for Shailene? That’s right, she’s that girl in that one George Clooney Hawaii film that both critics and audiences adored in 2011. Everyone expected Clooney to do well in "The Descendants," but when Woodley showed she could be just as compelling as the Hollywood legend, she found herself on almost every Hollywood gossiper's short list of serious Oscar contenders.
Woodley was nominated for a Golden Globe for her work in "Descendants," along with heavyweights Bejo, Chastain, McTeer, and Spencer for Best Supporting Actress. And if she gets an Oscar nomination, the world will want to see a lot more from the surprising Ms. Woodley.
There are never any sure bets when trying to predict what will and will not work in Hollywood, but these four performers are enjoying some welcome momentum, and have the talent to spin their circumstances into gold.
Will we still be comparing them to Fassbender and Chastain come next January? Only time will tell. But 2012 is pitching them a softball, and it's theirs to knock out of the park.
Travis Poppleton is a graduate from Brigham Young University who has spent most of his professional life in the tech-world. He has followed technology and film both casually and professionally for over a decade.
