By Garrison Thomas
Well, one of the effects.
As stars become more and more valuable to a franchise, they start to feel themselves a little bit and they ask for more money to reflect their value. However, these big budget superhero franchises sign these actors to multiple films with their salary only incrementally increasing for each subsequent film. While the actors would have a tough time getting a significant pay raise before their contract ends, they can still demand certain things to help improve their on-set quality of life.
When Robert Downey Jr. first signed on to become Iron Man, he was ready to do just about anything for the role. He hadn’t had a leading man role in a long time due to past substance abuse and run-ins with the law which meant that studios did not want to risk casting him. So, he wore an uncomfortably heavy Iron Man suit on set during filming. He also had to go through the lengthy process of attaching the arc reactor to his chest so that it looked like it was part of him. After Iron Man became a smash and RDJ garnered critical acclaim as Tony Stark, he was able to wield a lot more clout. By the time Iron Man 2 was released, you could tell the suit was CGI. Downey was tired of having to spend hours each day putting on a metal suit when they could just put dots on him and visually render the Iron Man suit. Every film since then has utilized the CGI suit.
When Robert Downey Jr. first signed on to become Iron Man, he was ready to do just about anything for the role. He hadn’t had a leading man role in a long time due to past substance abuse and run-ins with the law which meant that studios did not want to risk casting him. So, he wore an uncomfortably heavy Iron Man suit on set during filming. He also had to go through the lengthy process of attaching the arc reactor to his chest so that it looked like it was part of him. After Iron Man became a smash and RDJ garnered critical acclaim as Tony Stark, he was able to wield a lot more clout. By the time Iron Man 2 was released, you could tell the suit was CGI. Downey was tired of having to spend hours each day putting on a metal suit when they could just put dots on him and visually render the Iron Man suit. Every film since then has utilized the CGI suit.
Chris Hemsworth, who was virtually unknown in the states before 2011’s Thor, got tired of the wig he had to wear because it took two hours to put on each day. In Thor: Ragnarok, they found a useful plot point to justify cutting his hair: becoming an arena gladiator against his will. In Avengers: Infinity War and the upcoming Avengers: Endgame, Black Widow sports blonde hair which is Scarlett Johansson’s natural hair color. However the plot point is that she is trying to stay undercover since she is on the run with Captain America after violating the Sokovia Accords.
This practice is also present in the X-Men films. In 2011’s X-Men: First Class, Jennifer Lawrence spent nine hours in makeup when she had to become Mystique. After an Oscar win for Silver Linings Playbook and the success of the Hunger Games franchise boosted her star power, it only took three hours for Lawrence to become Mystique in X-Men: Days of Future Past. It was well documented that Lawrence did not want to return for X-Men: Apocalypse due to the quick production turnaround after Days of Future Past and the fact that she would have to return to the Mystique makeup. Again, the film explains Mystique’s human appearance by saying she is hiding from the authorities even though she proclaimed how she was “mutant and proud” earlier in the series.
The same thing occurred for Nicholas Hoult during his portrayal of Beast in the X-Men films. After ditching the cat-like appearance from First Class (which required facial prosthetics), Beast only becomes blue and hairy when he experiences extreme stress a la the Hulk in Days of Future Past. Bryan Singer introduces a mutation suppressant drug (which is analogous to heroin in the film) that allows Beast to maintain his human appearance.
This practice is also present in the X-Men films. In 2011’s X-Men: First Class, Jennifer Lawrence spent nine hours in makeup when she had to become Mystique. After an Oscar win for Silver Linings Playbook and the success of the Hunger Games franchise boosted her star power, it only took three hours for Lawrence to become Mystique in X-Men: Days of Future Past. It was well documented that Lawrence did not want to return for X-Men: Apocalypse due to the quick production turnaround after Days of Future Past and the fact that she would have to return to the Mystique makeup. Again, the film explains Mystique’s human appearance by saying she is hiding from the authorities even though she proclaimed how she was “mutant and proud” earlier in the series.
The same thing occurred for Nicholas Hoult during his portrayal of Beast in the X-Men films. After ditching the cat-like appearance from First Class (which required facial prosthetics), Beast only becomes blue and hairy when he experiences extreme stress a la the Hulk in Days of Future Past. Bryan Singer introduces a mutation suppressant drug (which is analogous to heroin in the film) that allows Beast to maintain his human appearance.
One of the most egregious cases of this appeared in 2017’s The Mummy with Russell Crowe’s depiction of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. In Van Helsing and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Hyde is presented as bestial and animalistic while Jekyll is a meek shell of a man. In the Mummy, they just add some CGI varicose veins to Russell Crowe and changed his eye color while he puts on a low-class English accent. Just lazy.
Have you noticed anything in films that was clearly influenced by a star’s clout and influence? Tell us by commenting below.
Have you noticed anything in films that was clearly influenced by a star’s clout and influence? Tell us by commenting below.