Sometimes it’s easy to see the clear passion a given star brings to their most personal films, championing passion projects that bloom into deserving critical darlings. More often than not, famous actors that reach a certain caliber are entrenched in filmmaking, being behind the camera as well as in front of it. This has led to manyamazing movies developed by well-known actorsof celebrity status, demonstrating their versatility in the craft of visual language.
In other instances, a given actor’s efforts to promote or save the production of a given film they’re signed on for speaks volumes to their love for the script. By going through so much extra effort to either publicly advocate for the film’s success or bydirecting a film they star in themselves, many actors make it clear which entries in their filmography they were the most excited about. In many instances, these efforts are well rewarded, with the efforts and advocacy of many Hollywood stars being far from misplaced.
Many recognizeGood Will Huntingas a profoundly impactful film making the most out of stunning performances from the late great Robin Williams, Ben Affleck, and Matt Damon. The film stars Damon as Will Hunting, a janitor working at MIT who is discovered to be a genius savant by a local professor. Over the course of the genuine, down-to-earth narrative,Matt Damon’s character must be savedfrom his own self-destructive tendencies as he realizes his potential.
Star Matt Damon actually originally wrote the script toGood Will Huntingas a final for a playwriting class he attended at Harvard. He then went on to develop the work into a feature screenplay with frequent collaborator Ben Affleck, shopping the finished script around. Matt Damon was nearly forced to drop out of the lead role due to the original studio buyer insisting on Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, but the concept survived with its original vision intact thanks to a new last-minute buyer.
Sometimes, an actor doesn’t even become a star until their passion project gets off the ground. The story ofRocky’s development is a startlingly inspiring one for anyone familiar, totally forging the career of Sylvester Stallone out of thin air. The famous sports drama detailing the perseverance and heart of fictional boxer Rocky Balboa was compelling enough to branch off into a handful of sequels, not to mention the more recentCreedspin-off movies set in the same continuity.
Writing the script himself, Stallone refused to allow anyone else to be cast in the lead role, even turning down tantalizing six-figure offers in order to ensure his vision was allowed to be realized unimpeded. This turned out to be the right move, as the film not only became quickly known as one of the greatest sports films of all time, but an inspirational beginning to Stallone’s long career as a treasured Hollywood star. It says a lot that the labor of love has become iconic enough to turn unremarkable locations in Philadelphia into certified landmarks.
Deadpoolmay not have been written or directed by Ryan Reynolds, but his outspoken advocacy for the film and possible willingness to bend the rules to force the studio’s hand speaks volumes to his clear passion for the idea.Deadpooltells the origin story of Reynolds' Merc with a Mouth, a wise-cracking, fourth-wall-breaking assassin whose body is kept immortal thanks to an experimental procedure. The film’s journey began when CGI test footage infamously leaked, sparking overwhelming interest.
It’s never been confirmed whetherReynolds himself was the one to leakDeadpool, but his own cheeky comments suggest he at least had a hand in doing so. It’s clear that, while unsanctioned by the studio, this was the right move and the first step to establishing a ludicrously successful franchise. Not only that, but theDeadpooltrilogy is a genuinely great R-rated superhero series, popular for a good reason.
Warren Beatty might not be the most recognizable household name actor by today’s standards, but he was deservedly one of the most well-recognized performers and filmmakers of the ’80s and ’70s. One of his most acclaimed projects remainsReds, an account of real-world American journalist John Reed, who chronicled the October Revolution in Russia in the bookTen Days That Shook The World. Redswent on to sweep the 1981 Oscars, taking home gold in a multitude of categories.
Beatty wrote the screenplay forRedshimself, becoming struck with the actual story of John Reeds as early as the ’60s. The project was finally able to find funding once Beatty had the financial sway and reputation granted to him by the success ofHeaven Can Wait,allowing him to cast himself as the famed writer. Luckily, Beatty’s gamble paid off massively, as evidenced by the film’s critical applause.
6Man Of Tai Chi
A Martial Arts Journey From An Action Icon
Just before the Keanu Reeves renaissance that began withtheJohn Wickseriesin 2014, the star ofTheMatrixwent all-in on a very different brand of action film. Here, Reeves plays the villainous Donaka Mark, the operator of a series of illegal underground fighting rings. Mark persuades a young tenacious fighter, played by Tiger Chen, to participate in his fights for money after his beloved tai chi temple is burned down.
Reeves also directedMan of Tai Chi,lending his years of martial arts and action franchise experience to the production as a true passion project. Sadly, the film was a critical and commercial flop, bitterly underrated by contemporaneous reviews. If there’s one star-directed passion project that deserves a retrospective, it’s Keanu Reeves’Man of Tai Chi, deserving of praise for its stunning choreography and refreshingly clear approach to editing.
Few prestige cinema darlings are as revered as Robert Duvall, known for bombshells likeThe Godfather, The Conversation, Apocalypse Now,andSling Blade.What’s lesser known is his own personal directorial project,The Apostle, which quietly earned him a Best Actor Academy Award nomination in 1998. The film stars Duvall as the titular Apostle, a preacher who started a new life in a small Louisiana town after beating his wife’s lover into a coma in Texas.
Despite releasing in 1997, Robert Duvall had conceived ofThe Apostleall the way back in 1984. It took Duvall years to get a final cut assembled, but when he was finally able to, studio executives allegedly left halfway through its first screening at the Toronto International Film Festival to place bids on distribution rights. The film was a massive financial and critical success, proving that Duvall’s long-harbored ideas were worth fighting for.
It’s important to remember that the one film often cited asthe greatest movie ever madewas also only created due to one actor and filmmaker’s creative vision. Orson Welles' creative career is a long and storied one, from his infamousWar of the Worldsradio hoax to his controversial stage production ofMacBethcasting an all-Black cast in the 1930s. It says a lot that his film debut,Citizen Kane, became commonly referred to as the greatest story ever put to film, at least for a long time.
Welles' successful reputation made him a hot commodity at RKO Pictures, affording him the now-unheard of creative control of being able to write, direct, and star in his own films with little studio oversight. The resulting story about the mystery behind a rich media magnate’s last words proved the decision to be one of the best financial gambles in show business ever made.Citizen Kanestill holds up many decades later, an enduring icon of cinema mastery.
For the most part, many actors' passion projects end up casting themselves for the lead role, understandably so, as it’s always easiest to direct oneself to perfection. This isn’t a weakness shared by Ben Affleck, now known just as well for the stark crime movies and thrillers he directs and produces, as well as his own acting abilities.Affleck wrote and directedGone Baby Gone, which follows a stomach-churning police investigation in Boston over a missing child.
Though Affleck didn’t insist on starring in the film himself, he was undeniably influential in the film’s creation as its writer, setting the story among the boroughs of his familiar native Boston. Ben Affleck’s brother Casey Affleck instead stuns in the lead role, using the two’s brotherly bond to ensure an eerie degree of understanding between director and subject. The result is a stunning mystery thriller that put Ben Affleck on the map as a director.
Arguably, all three of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s"Cornetto"Flavourstrilogyare clear passion projects, starring the English comedy duo while being directed by Edgar Wright. However,Hot Fuzzholds a special place in the series as co-lead Simon Pegg actually co-wrote the script alongside Wright, making it a special passion project standing out from the rest. Pegg plays a hardened London cop sent to patrol a quiet village in the English countryside, only to discover a terrifying conspiracy beneath the unassuming surface.
Hot Fuzzis a clear homage to the great cop movies of the 90s such asBad Boys, which is directly name-dropped by the dialogue. Pegg’s voice comes through clearly at various points in the script, perhaps elevating it beyondShaun of the DeadandThe World’s End.Comparisons aside,Hot Fuzzis a monumentally hilarious thriller packaged alongside some genuinely great action setpieces.
Tom Hanks isn’t typically thought of as a prestige director or producer in the same way some other major Hollywood stars are, but his efforts are not to be discounted. Hanks wrote and directed the weighty musical-comedyThat Thing You Do!,a period piece set in the ’60s following the flash-in-the-pan success of a one-hit wonder musical group. While Hanks does star, he’s a relatively minor role, though he more impressively lends his musical talents to the film’s soundtrack.
Tom Hanks doesn’t get enough credit for his labor of love that isThat Thing You Do!, wrapping up a cohesive vision into a funny, charming, and riveting musical comedy. The film still isn’t the most famous, but those in the know can recognize the comedic genius and genuine artistic integrity that the movie displays. Tom Hanks might never supplant his career as an actor, but he can do more than just star inmovies.
