Here’s my annual list of the Most Fascinating People of the year:
If you didn’t go to the movies a lot this year, you missed the on-screen domination of Kevin Hart. The combined grosses of “Ride Along” (co-starring Ice Cube), “About Last Night” and “Think Like a Man Too” totaled nearly $250 million domestically. And he also had time for numerous talk show and awards show appearances, and his very popular “Real Husbands of Hollywood” fake reality show.
“Alright, Alright, Alright, Already” was exactly what Emmys presenter Jimmy Kimmel said about the “Quote of the Year” from “Dallas Buyers Club” star Matthew McConaughey. The Best Actor winner across the board and Emmy nominee for his TV turn on HBO’s critically-acclaimed “True Detective” also added an honest effort in “Intersteller” to his ’14 resume.
Simply put, we “Let it Go” a lot. First, the breakout song from “Frozen” catapulted Idina Menzel to phenomenon status. But it was the now infamous “Adele Dazeem” flub by John Travolta on the Academy Awards that took Menzel’s fame to new heights. And the “Wicked” star received another Tony nomination for new musical “If/Then”. It’ll be tough for her to let 2014 go.
The world was bright and “Happy” with the insanely catchy song by Pharrell Williams and his trademark brown hat. However, like most pop songs with a hook that get stuck in your head, it was just a matter of time before no one wanted to be “Happy” anymore.
Shailene Woodley revamped the ‘page to screen’ genre. Best-selling YA books “Divergent” and “The Fault in Our Stars” both became surprise box office smash hits, with Woodley the focus of the praise, particularly for her emotionally powerful performance in “Stars.”
Many were skeptical that Jimmy Fallon could successfully take over “The Tonight Show” hosting duties from Jay Leno. But that’s exactly what he’s done. He’s #1 in the ratings and on social media, as Fallon has figured out the secret to internet domination: Stage 2-3 wacky, celebrity-related events (songs, games, videos, skits) on his show every night and post them online.
The Comeback King: Michael Keaton made a noticeable return in the Summer of 2010 with “Toy Story 3” (as the voice of Ken) and the comedy “The Other Guys”. But this year, with larger roles in “RoboCop”, “Need for Speed”, and a career-defining performance in “Birdman”, Keaton is back on the A-list.
It’ll be tough for Angelina Jolie to top her 2014. She starred as Disney’s “Sleeping Beauty” villain with heart in “Maleficent”, brought the late Louis Zamperini’s life story to the big screen as director of “Unbroken”, continued her important humanitarian work around the world, and finally got married to Brad Pitt.
J.K. Simmons is 2014’s “Cinderella” story: going from comedic character actor, co-star of “The Closer” and Farmers’ Insurance spokesman to Best Supporting Actor frontrunner for his stunning work as the brutal music teacher in the indie drama “Whiplash”.
And finally: The title of Entertainment Weekly’s profile on Chris Pratt was “From Zero to Hero”. His popularity skyrocketed this year, transitioning from a sidekick role on NBC’s “Parks and Recreation” to blockbuster movie star. As the voice of Emmett in “The LEGO Movie” and as Star-Lord/Peter Quill in the year’s biggest film, “Guardians of the Galaxy”, Pratt has become one of Hollywood’s hottest commodities. Starring in “Jurassic World”, out in next June, should help keep Pratt flying high.