Line #115 Main/StarMakingRole


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4	->''"Everyone said I was an overnight success, but it was ten years leading up to that."''
5	-->-- '''Creator/NaomiWatts''', in relation to her success with ''Film/MulhollandDrive''
6
7	Every A-List star starts somewhere. They do bit parts and [[SpearCarrier walk-on roles]]. They may be a lesser part of an EnsembleCast who becomes an EnsembleDarkHorse. They may even wind up doing [[OldShame something they may not be proud of later]]. Either way, when their memoirs are written or they sit down with interviewers, ''this'' is the role they point to and say "that's where it ''really'' started for me" -- the rise from obscurity to main player. The role may have been written for the specific purpose of making this specific person a star by showcasing their talents. More often than not, it's a case of taking the right part and running with it. This is the role they earn their name with.
8
9	This isn't always a star's first role. It's not even their first film or series to be a major success. It might even become completely overshadowed by the parts it helped give them in bigger-budget productions.
10
11	Sometimes an actor can have a star making role in one country (usually their homeland) and a different star making role on a more global basis. For example, Creator/ChristophWaltz was known for years in UsefulNotes/{{Germany}} and UsefulNotes/{{Austria}} before ''Film/IngloriousBasterds'' made him a household name to international audiences. And Creator/MarionCotillard became a star with the ''Film/{{Taxi}}'' films and ''Film/AVeryLongEngagement'' in UsefulNotes/{{France}} before ''Film/LaVieEnRose'' and her [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscar]] win made her a star abroad.
12
13	See also RetroactiveRecognition for reactions to roles the actor or actress had before their SMR (Creator/HarrisonFord as a bellhop in ''Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round'', [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrlULhMtmMQ here]]). Contrast StarDerailingRole for when the star goes in the opposite direction. Compare CareerResurrection for when they were once a star, faded, and became big again. Compare BreakthroughHit (equivalent for creators).
14
15	'''A Administrivia/{{No Recent Examples\|please}} rule applies to this trope'''. To avoid any knee-jerk reactions, examples shouldn't be added until '''six months''' after the work's released or the character first appears (whichever is later).
16	----
17	!Pages with their own sets of examples:
18	[[index]]
19	* StarMakingRole/AnimeAndManga
20	* StarMakingRole/AnimatedFilm
21	* StarMakingRole/{{Film}}
22	* StarMakingRole/LiveActionTV
23	* StarMakingRole/ProfessionalWrestling
24	* StarMakingRole/{{Theatre}}
25	* StarMakingRole/VideoGames (voice acting)
26	* StarMakingRole/WesternAnimation (excluding animated films)
27	[[/index]]
28	!!Other examples:
29	[[foldercontrol]]
30
31	[[folder:Comic Books]]
32	* Creator/BrianMichaelBendis and Creator/MarkMillar were obscure and unknown authors when they created the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel line. By the time they were done, Bendis was [[Creator/MarvelComics Marvel]]'s most important author, and Millar started his own imprint and turned many of his own comics into notable films.
33	* Writer Creator/TomKing got some early buzz in the early [[TheNewTens New '10s]] through indie work, and some fringe buzz with ''ComicBook/{{Grayson}}'', ''ComicBook/OmegaMen'', and ''The Sheriff of Babylon'', but it was ''ComicBook/TheVision2015'' that solidified his acclaim (and notoriety) as a writer rooted in [[DarkerAndEdgier psychologically deconstructing famous superheroes]], launching his role in bigger material such as ''ComicBook/BatmanTomKing'' and ''ComicBook/MisterMiracle2017''.
34	[[/folder]]
35
36	[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
37	* ''Series/SesameStreet'' and ''Series/TheMuppetShow'' for many of the first generation of [[Creator/MuppetPerformers Muppeteers]], the former also launched the careers of several of the newer Muppeteers.
38	** [[Creator/MuppetPerformers Kevin Clash]]'s [[Franchise/TheMuppets Muppet]] career was launched on ''Sesame Street'' when Richard Hunt tossed him a red Muppet named Elmo and told him "Give it a voice, Clash." The rest is history.
39	* Noel [=MacNeal=], Peter Linz (coupled with ''Series/BetweenTheLions''), and Tyler Bunch in ''Series/BearInTheBigBlueHouse''.
40	* Karen Prell, Kathryn Mullen, and Steve Whitmire in ''Series/FraggleRock''.
41	[[/folder]]
42
43	[[folder:Web Original]]
44	* Lindsay Jones, Barbara Dunkelman (as an actress), Kara Eberle, Arryn Zech, Creator/MichaelJones (as an actor) and Creator/JessicaNigri (as a voice actress) in ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}''.
45	* Creator/EmilyRatajkowski in the music video for Music/RobinThicke's "Blurred Lines".
46	* Creator/LiaMarieJohnson in ''WebVideo/{{React}}''.
47	* Ashley Clements, Creator/MaryKateWiles, Laura Spencer, Julia Cho, Jessica Jade Andres, Creator/ChristopherSean, Allison Paige, Briana Cuoco, and Daniel Vincent Gordh in ''WebVideo/TheLizzieBennetDiaries''.
48	* Creator/FeliciaDay and Creator/AmyOkuda in ''WebVideo/TheGuild''.
49	* Creator/LizzieFreeman (in regards to WebAnimation) in WebAnimation/Supermarioglitchy4sSuperMario64Bloopers.
50	[[/folder]]
51
52	[[folder:Misc]]
53	* ''Magazine/{{Playboy}}'' Magazine has a habit of turning its centerfolds into stars (albeit usually as [[MsFanservice sex symbols]] who have difficulty being taken seriously as actresses). Several of them have gone on to bigger and better things after posing nude for the infamous men's magazine; some become so famous that it's easy to forget they got their start as one of Hef's girls.
54	** Creator/JayneMansfield
55	** Creator/BettiePage
56	** Shannon Tweed
57	** Creator/PamelaAnderson
58	** Anna Nicole Smith
59	** Kelly Monaco
60	** Kendra Wilkinson
61	** Creator/JennyMcCarthy
62	** Brande Roderick
63	** Donna D’Errico
64	** Sara Jean Underwood
65	** Dorothy Stratten
66	** Creator/CarmenElectra
67	** Erika Eleniak
68	* Japanese voice actress Creator/SakiFujita has had plenty of roles in popular anime, including ''Anime/YuruYuri'' and ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'', but what won her worldwide fame was lending her voice to the creation of the second Character Vocal Series software program - for some character called [[Music/{{Vocaloid}} Miku Hatsune]].
69	* Music/UnknownP going viral after his appearance on "Fire In The Booth" (as of 2022 it has racked up over 13 million views) and becoming a meme was the catalyst for his creator Munya Chawawa's rise from a relatively unknown internet funnyman to a rising star in UK comedy, going on to win several major awards.
70	[[/folder]]
71
72	[[folder:Sports broadcasting]]
73	* Joe Buck at the 1996 World Series. At just 27 years of age, Buck became the youngest person to ever call all nine innings for a World Series television broadcast while being a full-time network employee. Buck would eventually call the World Series consecutively from 2000-2021 until his departure from Creator/{{Fox}} at the end of the 2021 season.
74	* Howard Cosell on ''Monday Night Football''.
75	* Creator/BobCostas on the ''Major League Baseball Game of the Week'' on Creator/{{NBC}}, in particular, the "Ryne Sandberg Game" between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals on June 23, 1984.
76	* Chris Cuthbert during the 1988 Stanley Cup playoff game between the Washington Capitals and New Jersey Devils on April 18. A power outage struck the UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} area, which ended the telecast from that city, and Creator/{{CBC}} was forced to turn to Cuthbert in UsefulNotes/WashingtonDC to provide the full broadcast – play-by-play, analyst, and host.
77	* Noah Eagle at the Chicago Bears–New Orleans Saints NFL Wild Card playoff game on January 10, 2021, the first ever NFL game to be broadcast live on Creator/{{Nickelodeon}}.
78	* Dick Enberg at the 1969 Houston-UCLA college basketball game dubbed the "Game of the Century". It marked the first time that a regular season UsefulNotes/{{NCAA}} basketball game was televised nationwide in prime time.
79	* Tim [=McCarver=] at the 1985 World Series, when he was tabbed by [[Creator/AmericanBroadcastingCompany ABC]] to serve as a last minute replacement for Howard Cosell, who was on the outs with the network due to his controversial book ''I Never Played the Game''.
80	* Jim [=McKay=] on ''Wide World of Sports''.
81	* Sean [=McDonough=] on Creator/{{CBS}}' Major League Baseball coverage, when he was tabbed to replace Jack Buck as their lead play-by-play announcer beginning in 1992.
82	* Al Michaels with the [[Film/{{Miracle}} "Miracle on Ice"]] at the [[UsefulNotes/OlympicGames 1980 Winter Olympics]] in Lake Placid, New York.
83	* Jon Miller on ''Sunday Night Baseball'' on Creator/{{ESPN}}.
84	* John Motson started out on [[Creator/TheBBC BBC radio]] before becoming a TV football commentator for ''Match of the Day'' on a one-season contract at the start of the 1971-72 [[UsefulNotes/AssociationFootball football]] season. His big break came in February 1972 when he was assigned to cover an [[UsefulNotes/TheFACup FA Cup]] third-round replay between Newcastle United (then of the First Division) and non-league Hereford United. Newcastle were expected to win easily, but in the event Hereford caused [[DavidVersusGoliath one of the biggest upsets in the history of the competition]]. The game was therefore the first featured match, and led to Motson getting assigned more high-profile matches -- ultimately becoming one of the best-regarded commentators in the game.
85	* Brent Musburger and Greg Gumbel on ''The NFL Today'' on Creator/{{CBS}}.
86	* Chris Schenkel at the 1958 NFL Championship Game between the Baltimore Colts and New York Giants, dubbed "The Greatest Game Ever Played".
87	* Vin Scully at the [[UsefulNotes/{{Baseball}} 1953 World Series]]. At just 25 years of age, Scully became the youngest person to ever broadcast a World Series game.
88	* Ken Squier at the 1979 Daytona 500, the first [[UsefulNotes/{{NASCAR}} 500-mile race]] to be broadcast in its entirety live on national television in the United States.
89	* Dick Stockton at the 1975 World Series, where he was behind the mic on Creator/{{NBC}} when Carlton Fisk hit his now iconic home run in Game 6.
90	[[/folder]]

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