Zendaya Coleman and Timothée Chalamet attend The Movie ‘Dune: Part Two’ press conference at Conrad Hotels in Yeongdeungpo-gu on February 21, 2024 in Seoul, South Korea. ” width=”970″ height=”681″ data-caption=’Zendaya and Timothée Chalamet represent a new generation of Hollywood star power. <span class=”lazyload media-credit”>The Chosunilbo JNS/Imazins via Getty Images</span>’>
Raw box office totals are too blunt a measure of an actor’s star power. Over the past 15 years, franchises and IP have increasingly done the heavy lifting, often overshadowing individual performers. An actor may also be the second or third lead, making it hard to credit them with every dollar a film earns. Many moviegoers turn out for The Avengers, not necessarily for any one cast member. As a result, it’s difficult to pinpoint what, exactly, is driving audiences.
To get a better sense of value in this maddeningly subjective field, Greenlight Analytics’ Talent DNA tracker asks audiences a simple question: Would you see a movie in theaters if this person is in it? Across tracking waves covering hundreds of actors and hundreds of thousands of responses, four distinct types of star power begin to crystallize.
The genre contractors
This category includes actors who are broadly popular but particularly strong draws within specific types of films. Among the top-ranked names in Theatrical Intent are long-time mainstays such as Denzel Washington (57.9 percent of respondents said they would see him in theaters), Samuel L. Jackson (56.2 percent), Jackie Chan (51.3 percent), and Liam Neeson (48.5 percent). These veterans have built loyal followings over decades. While their careers span a wide range of roles, each has come to thrive in a particular lane.
Washington is often the center of ethically ambiguous crime dramas. Fans love Jackson’s adjacency to action-genre flicks. Chan is arguably the most celebrated martial arts star in cinematic history. Neeson kick-started the “old man action” trend.
Washington’s oeuvre has grossed nearly $5 billion worldwide across his career. But it is the remarkable consistency of his three Equalizer films—all grossing between $190 million and $192 million worldwide—that is most illustrative of his consistency in the genre. His biggest career box office hit (unadjusted for inflation), Gladiator II, isn’t even his own franchise; instead, his acclaimed supporting performance added weight to a legacy sequel without its original star. Fans love Denzel, and that affection takes different shades that manifest in ticket sales.
The platform draws
Some actors’ magnetic pull spans across platforms. Audiences love to watch them not only in theatres but also at home. Brad Pitt (49.1 percent Theatrical Intent) is a great contemporary example. F1: The Movie ($634 million worldwide) was the highest-grossing “original” film of 2025, but it was rooted in a popular sport with global appeal. The alignment between Pitt’s star power and a familiar concept helped elevate the film, which broke out as an adult-skewing tentpole without traditional franchise backing.
Adam Sandler (47.7 percent Theatrical Intent, 55.9 percent Streaming Intent) also thrives in this lane. His animated hit Leo (224.1 million views) and Happy Gilmore 2 (135.1 million) are among the most popular Netflix original movies in the last three years.
Washington fits this category as well. His Streaming Intent (65.9 percent) is eight points higher than his already elite Theatrical Intent. His audience will follow him anywhere, which is likely why Netflix felt comfortable paying him a reported $35 million for the upcoming Here Comes the Flood.
The emerging tier
This category speaks for itself: younger, rising stars who are establishing themselves through standalone leading roles and original or new-to-screen material. Michael B. Jordan may be the most illuminating case study at the moment, with Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya also firmly part of the conversation.
Jordan’s Theatrical Intent score of nearly 49 percent places him ahead of Harrison Ford, Liam Neeson and many others. His Fandom score of 72.6 percent points to a deeply embedded appeal across broad audiences, built over two decades of film and television work. On paper, he already looks like a fully formed star, and the data increasingly support that view.
Creed III ($276 million on a $75 million budget) showed he could expand an existing franchise’s audience. But Sinners ($370 million worldwide) is the real proof point: an original film in which he appears in nearly every scene, playing two distinct characters, that became both a box office hit and an Oscar winner. Director Ryan Coogler’s pedigree and the film’s genre certainly contributed, but the results suggest audiences will show up for a Michael B. Jordan-led project.
Elsewhere on the spectrum are Keke Palmer (48.7 percent Theatrical Intent) and Hailee Steinfeld (42.8 percent), who represent emerging stars of different ilk. Both have worked steadily for years, but Palmer’s appeal cuts more broadly across demographics and more closely resembles that of established genre-driven performers. The success of her original comedy One of Them Days ($50 million domestic on a $14 million budget) is a major feather in her cap.
Steinfeld’s audience scores are slightly lower but notably consistent. With roles across Transformers, Marvel (both live-action and animation), and the video game–adjacent Arcane, she has developed a strong following among franchise and genre fans. Neither actress has yet had the opportunity to fully test her draw with a blockbuster original film. (Give us the Keke Palmer/Hailee Steinfeld two-hander horror movie we deserve.)
Final words
These tiers are not in competition with one another. A Genre Contractor is not inherently more bankable than a Prestige Draw, and actors are not confined to a single category over the course of their careers. Denzel Washington was a top-tier leading man long before The Equalizer, and Brad Pitt was an established movie star well before F1.
This framework isn’t about which actors have generated the most box office revenue. It’s about the relationship each star has cultivated with audiences and how that connection translates into fandom and potential.
