From his critically acclaimed dual performance in Sinners to his red carpet embrace with Tom Cruise at the Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning premiere, Michael B. Jordan‘s 2025 has been a movie star’s dream year so far. The success of Sinners specifically has done a lot not only for Jordan’s career but for the industry at large, as it helped show Hollywood that original tales built around charismatic stars can still draw in big box office numbers—even in the age of superheroes, sequels, and reboots. Considering the nauseating number of conversations that have been had by industry insiders and regular film fans in recent years about whether movie stars still exist, this was a big win.
Even in a time of triumph, though, Jordan is careful about avoiding overexposure and preserving his public image. In a recent interview with Vulture, the Creed star stated he actively chooses not to post on social media or talk to the press about his personal life too much for the express purpose of “creating a demand.” It’s a strategy that was at least partially informed by wisdom from one of the all-time great movie stars, Denzel Washington. According to Jordan, Washington once advised him, “Why would they pay to see you on a weekend if they see you all week for free?” It’s a question any A-list actor should probably ask themselves at some point in their career. But it is especially crucial now, at a time when the public’s national obsession with celebrity actually threatens movie stars’ ability to draw audiences to the theater.
Celebrity Obsession Has Lessened the Power and Relevance Movie Stars Once Possessed
While it might seem contradictory to say that movie stardom is dying at the same time our society’s collective interest in celebrities has never been greater—thanks to the unfiltered access granted by social media and 24/7 entertainment coverage—the two things are actually directly connected. The celebrity-consumed internet era we are currently living in has resulted in less of a need for fans to show up at a cinema in order to see their favorite stars. For kids in the ’90s who were obsessed with Leonardo DiCaprio, it made sense to pay to go see Titanic five times in the theater because they didn’t have access to that much Leo-related content in their everyday lives. Sure, they could maybe catch a talk show appearance or a red carpet interview on an award show telecast, but that was pretty much it. And, with the internet obviously not being what it is now, those were things they could only really see once live, or not at all.
Related
The 10 Most Iconic Movie Stars of the 1950s, Ranked
“I’m selfish, impatient, and a little insecure…”
When you fast forward to today, celeb-crazed young people can spend countless hours online scrolling through content centered around their preferred stars. Not to mention streaming services and VOD platforms allow us to easily boot up a show or movie starring our favorite actor whenever we want. Spending money to see someone’s work on the big screen is no longer the main way fans interact with their favored movie stars. There’s less of an urgency for some people to go see Timothée Chalamet in Marty Supreme or Paul Mescal in The History of Sound when they can instead spend their time looking at various social media posts and watching dozens of curated interview compilations created by stan accounts. Social media, and the internet at large, have broken down the barrier between audience and performer. While this has helped a lot of people become extraordinarily famous, it’s made it harder for actors to attain traditional movie star qualities—namely, the ability to carry a film on your shoulders at the box office. In order for movie stars to find that level of success again, they need to return to a time when they possessed greater mystique.
Movie Stars Can Benefit From Being Less Accessible and More Mysterious
Nowadays, so much of celebrity is about authenticity and access. Influencers and internet stars find audiences by providing a glimpse into their “real life.” Long-form interview podcasts featuring famous people have skyrocketed in popularity because we no longer just want to hear an artist’s music, watch an actor’s movies, or see an athlete perform—we want an inside look into how they think and who they are. While this has made for some great internet content over the years, it’s a little bit antithetical to the entire movie star experience. True movie stars need to remain somewhat unknowable. That’s what makes them so alluring in the first place.
Though our noisy and crowded entertainment landscape has understandably led to studios feeling the need to employ a full-court press strategy when it comes to movie promotion these days, there’s a real benefit to stars playing into their mysteriousness and not making themselves overly available. Not only does this ensure that audiences will associate an actor with their performances first and foremost, but an air of reclusiveness also creates more inherent intrigue around a star and builds a bigger demand for their upcoming projects. Moreover, once an actor’s personal life becomes too tied to their public brand, their on-screen believability in any given role starts to diminish. While it’s probably impossible for any famous figure to be completely removed from the internet and out of the spotlight entirely these days, it is never a bad idea for actors to limit their social media presence or participation in invasive press tours.
- Release Date
-
January 14, 2026
- Runtime
-
127 Minutes
- Director
-
Oliver Hermanus
- Writers
-
Ben Shattuck, Oliver Hermanus
- Producers
-
Tim Haslam, Andrea Roa, Thérèsa Ryan, Sara Murphy, Andrew Kortschak, Lisa Ciuffetti