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Julia Stiles was supposed to be famous by now, right? After all, wasn't she one of Teen People's "21 Hottest Stars Under 21" in 1999? And wasn't she selected as one of People's "50 Most Beautiful People" in 2001? And wasn't she one of Teen People's "25 Hottest Stars Under 25" in 2002? So you'd think by 2006...what? Tippy-top of the A-List? Twin Oscars mounted on her bedposts? A monthly magazine titled In Stiles chronicling her hygiene, her home décor, her sandals and sunglasses?
So what happened?
Julia Stiles, bright of smile, pie of face, questionable of talent, had her more-or-less coming-out in 10 Things I Hate About You in 1999. She was cute (right?). She had chops (sure!). Then, for good measure, she went to Columbia (for reals!). Basically, on the Stars of Tomorrow list, she quickly ascended right near the top, alongside Kate Hudson, Kirsten Dunst, and Katie Holmes -- the KKK, if you will.
Well, Kirsten Dunst's fame is proceeding apace, thanks to the Spider-Man franchise (and little else, alas). Kate Hudson is stuck making essentially one long, four-year romantic comedy titled How to Lose Alex and Emma and Raising Helen and You, Me and Dupree in 10 Days, co-starring Matthew McConaughey. Katie Holmes...well, everyone knows what happened to Katie Holmes except, ironically, Katie Holmes.
And as for Julia -- it all kind of fizzled out. Not totally. She's in The Omen, which feels, to be honest, like exactly the kind of career move you make when a string of films has faltered (safe remake, honest paycheck, limited skill-set requirements). Stiles, after all, recently made The Prince & Me and A Guy Thing, two movies we are currently unable to remember a single thing about. The Prince & Me assumedly involved a prince. A Guy Thing assumedly involved a guy and his thing. Beyond that, we're stumped.
And to tell you the truth, we like Julia Stiles. The smile, the warm aspect, the down-to-earth personality (so it seems) on the talk shows and everywhere else. She had us right up until Mona Lisa Smile -- which was supposed to be a coming out for a whole new generation of female stars. Dunst! Stiles! Gyllenhaal! It was like The Dead Poets Society for little women. But the movie blew and, most surprisingly, Stiles blew. She blew the hardest. She blew till she couldn't blow no more. She blew until she green.
Stiles has complained of late that maybe her "quiet" personality -- i.e. no recent nail-fights with Paris Hilton or fender-benders with Wilmer Valderrama -- have impeded her career. But another terrible possibility is coming to light. Maybe she's just not that good at the acting. Of course, being not-good-at-the-acting doesn't mean she can't be a star. Just not the mega-super-wonder-star we all expected her to be. And being not-good-at-the-acting doesn't mean she shouldn't be famous. Just not this famous. Not yet.
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