# Non-American Dopers, Biggest movie star where you're from? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 28, 2013, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915 "2013-04-28T16:16:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/21 "2013-04-29T08:31:45Z")
> [@Sr\_Siete](#): > > I’m from Spain. Hollywood stars are a way bigger draw than the local actors. > > So it’s all about the usual Brad Pitt - Tom Cruise - Will Smith thing. WHAT! What about Penelope Cruz? Antonio Banderas? Javier Bardem? (I notice the OP omitted all women from his list, but I’m ignoring that oversight.) ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/22 "2013-04-29T09:22:28Z")
> [@Sr\_Siete](#): > > I’m from Spain. Hollywood stars are a way bigger draw than the local actors. > > So it’s all about the usual Brad Pitt - Tom Cruise - Will Smith thing. You’ve never heard of Penélope Cruz (and Mónica!), any of the other “Almodóvar girls” or the Bardem clan? Two of them are even married to each other! There are a few which work more in France than in Spain, and some who jump back and forth between Spain and Italy. Often the director is the biggest draw for Spanish movies: Almodóvar, Amenábar (we share him with Chile, his country of birth)… Bigas Luna died at the start of this month; for many foreigners, he may at best be “a guy who directed several of Pe’s movies”; many people here will have no problem naming half a dozen of his movies but will have to think when asked to name the cast. Then there’s the comics, including some of the aforementioned Almodóvar girls, but also many others which we don’t really see as “exportable” but which can be a very big draw. And a recent animation film starred - Ángel Iniesta, the guy who scored The Goal in the last World Cup. It had started as a cameo, but they liked his work a lot and he ended up doing one of the two main characters. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/23 "2013-04-29T09:38:23Z")
France. I’m affraid it’s Depardieu that they keep casting everywhere (\*) providing they have the budget and who’s unashamedly willing to play in any movie, good or awfully bad. Besides he currently insists on making himself even more famous with his creative attempts to avoid taxes (he’s currently a Russian citizen theorically living in Belgium). (\*) He used to be a great actor, but nowadays I can’t even tell because I’ve seen him so many times that I can’t get any suspension of disbelief when I watch him onscreen. I can’t see a priest, or a police officer, or a sale manager…I can only see DEPARDIEU. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/24 "2013-04-29T09:41:36Z")
> [@clairobscur](#): > > France. I’m affraid it’s Depardieu that they keep casting everywhere (\*) providing they have the budget and who’s unashamedly willing to play in any movie, good or awfully bad. Besides he currently insists on making himself even more famous with his creative attempts to avoid taxes (he’s currently a Russian citizen theorically living in Belgium). I would say your female actors stand taller these days – Juliette Binoche, Audrey Tatou, and I’ll share Kristin Scott Thomas with you in the spirit of Entente Cordiale.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/25 "2013-04-29T09:44:14Z")
There have been several movies lately where I was pretty befuddled by the casting of him - it should have been listed as “Depardieu and a slew of visual effects people erasing wrinkles”. Catherine Deneuve has aged quite gracefully, I recently caught a comedy of hers on the train (best thing about those train rides is often the movie). And yes, Depardieu was in it too. And Sergi López in a three-lines role. Omar Sy became very exportable thanks to The Intouchables, I saw a poster for a recent movie of his just yesterday (it looked like a comedy about one of those soccer teams which are born for local tournaments). It seems as if Spanish distributors are willing to give any movie he’s in a try. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/26 "2013-04-29T10:59:44Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > There are a few which work more in France than in Spain, and some who jump back and forth between Spain and Italy. Can you tell us more about that? I’m used to seeing Italian and Spanish actors in French movies but I had no idea that the same phenomenon existed between Italy and Spain. It makes sense but I had never thought about it. To the OP: The biggest stars are the same in Belgium as in the US. Local stars would include **Benoit Poelvoorde** , **Cécile de France** and **Marie Gillain**. As far as French cinema is concerned, I agree with clairobscur’s comment on **Depardieu** though I think he was more ubiquitous 10-20 years ago. Same thing with **Daniel Auteuil** and **Jean Reno**. Among the younger actors, there’s **Jean Dujardin** , **Kad Merad** and **Omar Sy**. As far as actresses are concerned, **Audrey Tatou** and **Marion Cotillard** are definitely popular. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/27 "2013-04-29T11:45:01Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > …but I would say the biggest Kiwi actor is Sam Neill, followed closely by Karl Urban. I forgot to mention Melanie Lynskey, Anna Paquin, and perhaps Alan Dale, who is originally from my home town. ---
**Author:** ![Sr\_Siete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Sr\_Siete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sr_Siete)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/28 "2013-04-30T00:52:36Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > You’ve never heard of Penélope Cruz (and Mónica!), any of the other “Almodóvar girls” or the Bardem clan? Two of them are even married to each other! There are a few which work more in France than in Spain, and some who jump back and forth between Spain and Italy. > > Often the director is the biggest draw for Spanish movies: Almodóvar, Amenábar (we share him with Chile, his country of birth)… Bigas Luna died at the start of this month; for many foreigners, he may at best be “a guy who directed several of Pe’s movies”; many people here will have no problem naming half a dozen of his movies but will have to think when asked to name the cast. > > Then there’s the comics, including some of the aforementioned Almodóvar girls, but also many others which we don’t really see as “exportable” but which can be a very big draw. And a recent animation film starred - Ángel Iniesta, the guy who scored The Goal in the last World Cup. It had started as a cameo, but they liked his work a lot and he ended up doing one of the two main characters. It’s Andrés. Andrés Iniesta. As a culé I have to set that straight. The OP wan’t asking for native movies stars, but for the _biggest._ And quite frankly, if you ask a hundred Spaniards who would they rather have a pic taken with, Brad Pitt or Javier Bardem, 99 would pick Brad Pitt and the one left would say ‘Javier who?’ Actually, nowadays, the popularity curve would be something like: Brad Pitt - the guy playing the priest in “Puente Viejo” - Javier Bardem… because nobody actually watches the mumbling indie flicks Bardem usually picks. ---
**Author:** ![toast\_pakora](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3ec8ea/32.png) [@toast\_pakora](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toast_pakora)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/29 "2013-04-30T01:16:03Z")
I propose Mads Mikkelsen for the Danes. The Swedes are spoiled for choice though; one of the Skarsgard’s? ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/30 "2013-04-30T01:16:25Z")
[Han Suk-kyu](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Suk-kyu) is probably the biggest movie star overall in Korea, if you don’t count foreign actors. ---
**Author:** ![newcomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e5b9ba/32.png) [@newcomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcomer)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/31 "2013-04-30T01:36:34Z")
Former Yugoslavia - [Rade Serbedzija](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0784884/?ref_=sr_1) ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/32 "2013-04-30T12:32:42Z")
> [@toast\_pakora](#): > > The Swedes are spoiled for choice though; one of the Skarsgard’s? Why not all of them? 😛 I guess that among older actors the most well known outside Sweden would be [Erland Josephson](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erland_Josephson), [Max von Sydow](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_von_Sydow) and [Ingrid Bergman](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingrid_Bergman). ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/33 "2013-04-30T14:35:42Z")
I think a lot of the responses here didn’t even bother to read the OP. > [@Leaffan](#): > > Christopher Plumber > Dan Akroyd > John Candy > James Doohan > Raymond Burr > Jim Carrey > Michael J Fox > Lorne Greene > Phil Hartman > Margot Kidder > Eugene Levy > Mike Myers > Leslie Nielsen > Catherine O’Hara > Mary Pickford > Martin Short > Donald Sutherland > William Shatner So you are saying that in Canada, all of those people are bigger box office draws and more famous than Brad Pitt, George Clooney or Robert Downey Jr? ---
**Author:** ![truthSeeker2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7cd45c/32.png) [@truthSeeker2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/truthSeeker2)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/34 "2013-04-30T14:48:56Z")
the number 1 in India is Amitabh Bachchan. He is a senior actor, a great actor, has done many memorable roles and has a great voice. Shahrukh is also very popular but in terms of acting skills, he is relatively ordinary n there are plenty of actors who are better than him. Check out [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7jjpnte_Kg)old item number from an old movie featuring Shahrukh and Aishwarya. ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915/35 "2013-04-30T14:54:13Z")
If I understand your question correctly, I’d say Tom Cruise. That’s based on the understanding that you’re asking me to name a big movie star, regardless of where they come from. I’m a New Zealander living in the UK. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-biggest-movie-star-where-youre-from/656915.md?page=1)