MovieChat Forums > Common Discussion > How on earth did Common land movie roles...

How on earth did Common land movie roles??


I am just soo bemused...as to how Common is able to appear in movies such as American Gangster, Wanted and etc...For god's sake, the guy's is stiff and his expression in almost all e movies are the same..

i have watched reruns of "Get Rich or Die Tryin, 50 cent doesnt look that bad..you can still feel emotions thru his actin..

but Common...gosh..either hes got a really great agent..or some great Connections!!

reply

I'm guessing it's because of the way he looks, the way he sounds, and his shear size; not to mention his intensity. The guy has action written all over him, and I know quite a few women who saw him in Smokin Aces and that Alicia Keys Video who would go see a movie just because he is in it.

reply

well, i doubt it was connections. he's said numerous times most of Hollywood isn't even aware of who he is or his position in music. could it be, he's impressive audition-wise? who's to say, other than the casting directors. we may never know.

i must say, though, not that 50 wouldn't be a good actor, but i think it's a little bit difficult to compare his acting roles to Common's. he's only starred in one movie that we've seen so far, and that was of his life story, which, assuming, wouldn't be much of a stretch. Common has played characters completely opposite of the musical persona that he's known for. and yes, they are bit roles similar to each other. (he plays "strong and stoic" well, lol. he's received pretty good reviews for it, too.) but part of that could be because he is a new actor who plans on steadily progressing to different roles, instead of diving right into some large lead role, not being completely prepared for it. granted, as a fan of his music i would love to see him expand and go another route with a bigger role and a different genre of cinema because i know he can. but i know he knows what he's doing and i respect his pace. and more than anything i respect the fact that he's trying to EARN the roles he's getting as an actor, other than using his rap name as a "hustle."

reply

commons expressions in movies are so.. stiff.


“Free and responsible government by popular consent just can´t exist without an informed public.”

reply

People in Hollywood are probably indebted to his agent...

Someday - and that day may never come - I'll call upon you to do a service for me. But until that day, accept this justice as gift on my daughter's wedding day....Its probably something like that


Michael hasn't evaluated me in years - Dwight K. Schrute

reply

i dont think he's the best actor in the world or anything, and have been suprised in how many movies he's been ending up in. But how can u be suprised that ANY rapper is ending up in a lot of movies now a days? The fact is that most producers rather get some one in their movie who already has a fan base compared to an up and coming talented unknown actor. If a rapper can memorize his lines and isnt hideous, he will always find some type of role no matter how good of an actor he is. But common has been around for awhile and hes like almost 40 so it took awhile for him to get his big break in the movie business.

But to the person who said that most of hollywood doesnt know who he is.. and that it was common himself that said that. i think he was just being modest.

reply

i don't think he was being modest at all. he's just getting a name for himself in mainstream America, and Hollywood, for the most part, doesn't know much about hip-hop artists unless they're mainstream. and he is not that. a lot of the attention that he's now getting for his music is based off people seeing the movies he's been in. hell, half the people that post on this board don't know much about him as a musical artist - they just want to complain about another rapper taking a worthy actor's role.

reply

i guess, but he's been in the spotlight before, when him and west coast connection/ ice cube, had a bit of beef between them.. though it was all a misunderstanding. But you cant say he wasn't being modest, common seems like a modest guy in my opinion which is kinda what i dig about him, he like knows he's the *beep* but doesnt act like it.. people knew about him they just didnt see him doing anything more than rapping, since he was so good at that.

like the game and 50 on the other hand are mediocre rappers, so its i dont know its kind of expected of them to try their foot in movies.. and they have a fan base already so producers and movie companies feel fine casting them. they have less to risk though since people know their performances might be weak since they are rapppers, common has like the opposite problem almost like him doing movies will take creditablity away from his music, and their music will take creditablility away from their acting.

i liked common in smoking aces and even american gangster, but street kings was the same as smoking aces, i just think he needs to pick smarter roles if he wants to stick around for awhile. unless he's just doing it for the money he doesnt need to worry about being typecast.

reply

but mainstream America was not aware of that beef - he was most recognized for the Gap commercial before he was in movies. i've seen in interviews that many of his co-stars never heard his music, so i'm pretty sure he's aware of his noteriety in the film industry.

as for his roles, i think he's going for an image in the movies that is opposite of what he has been pigeonholed into in hip-hop. he's, for the most part, been seen as this afro-centric, bohemian, peaceful dude talking about uplifting the community. he's playing harder characters in the movies to separate the images. though i do agree with you - i think he should go for different (and BIGGER! lol) roles now.


reply