If Hollywood were to release a movie about your life, chances are you’d pick Sandra Bullock or Tom Hanks to play you.
Those two top the list for male and female actors that the general public would like to see portray them in a movie. Behind Bullock, its Julia Roberts and Meryl Streep, on the overall list, followed by Hanks, who is the highest-ranking male actor on the list.
Millennial males seem to favor Leonardo DiCaprio. When asked: “Imagine someone made a movie about your life. In an ideal world, who would you like to play you?” he was their top choice, with nine percent of young males choosing the Academy Award winner among the 69 applicable names submitted.
Gen X males picked DiCaprio’s Once Upon A Time in Hollywood co-star Brad Pitt (9%) and Baby Boomer males chose Tom Hanks (9%) to play them on the silver screen.
Responses were unprompted, meaning panelists didn’t choose from a prescribed list.
Hanks — who plays Mr. Rogers in the forthcoming A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood — is often called “America’s Dad,” but Clint Eastwood is more likely to be cast by fathers than males who are not parents or guardians.
Among female respondents, Millennials would cast Jennifer Lawrence (12%) to play them and 14 percent of Gen Xers and 16 percent of Boomers would choose Sandra Bullock.
These stars all have one thing in common: Fans of all five actors (DiCaprio, Pitt, Hanks, Lawrence and Bullock) are more likely than the general population to see a movie at the cinema or theatre on or after the official release.
Even better news for studios that cast DiCaprio and Lawrence: Superfans (YouGov panel members with strongly positive views of the actors) of the two are more likely than the general population to see movies at advance theatre screenings.
A deeper dive shows Lawrence fans are more likely than the general public to enjoy thrillers, fantasy, and musical and dance genres. DiCaprio fans are more likely to enjoy action, drama and animated movies.
Methodology: Total unweighted sample size was 17,603 US adults. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all US adults (ages 18+). A total of 69 applicable names were submitted.
Image: Getty
