Jennifer Lawrence came flying right out of the blocks in her early career. The Kentucky-born actress got her big break when she was cast as Lauren Pearson in the sitcom called The Bill Engvall Show that aired on TBS between 2007 and 2009. Within a period of about five years after that, she had already taken on multiple iconic roles that shot her up right to the top of global attention. Most notably, of course, were her portrayals of Raven 'Mystique' Darkhölme in X-Men: First Class in 2011 and Katniss Everdeen in the first instalment of The Hunger Games movie series in 2012. She would reprise these two roles in six other films, all sequels of the original pair.
About one and a half decades since Lawrence kick started her career, though, her popularity appears to be somehow dwindling. Here is a quick look at the path she charted on her way to the top, and why many believe she is not as in vogue now as she was, say, ten years ago.
A Bountiful Year
2008 was a bountiful year in the life of a then 17-year old Lawrence, as she featured in three motion pictures that were released that year. Garden Party was the least illustrious on the list, and the actress only had a bit part role to play in it. The Poker House saw her in the main role, although the indie project didn't receive too much national or global attention. The film was later retitled to Behind Closed Doors. Lawrence's third film of 2008 was The Burning Plain, an ambitious drama film that lined her up alongside the likes of Charlize Theron, Kim Basinger and Joaquim de Almeida.
Two years later, Lawrence starred in Winter's Bone, the movie that perhaps established her as an actor truly worth her salt. In it, she played Ree Dolly, a teenage girl who goes on a quest to find her estranged father so as to prevent the rest of their family from being evicted out of their home. For her work on Winter's Bone, Lawrence landed her first-ever Academy Award nomination, in the Best Actress category. It was one of four nominations that the film received that year, including one for Best Picture.
Made The Hollywood Stage Her Own
Her enthralling performance also seemingly earned her the part of Mystique in Marvel Entertainment's X-Men, as was reported by Digital Spy in 2010. First Class was a worldwide sensation, with widespread positive reviews and a global turnover of $353.6 million at the box office. It was in 2012, however, that Lawrence really made the Hollywood stage her own. Director Gary Ross took on the initiative (and a cool $78 million budget from Color Force) to translate Suzanne Collins' 2008 novel, The Hunger Games, onto the big screen. Lawrence stepped into the skin of heroic character Katniss Everdeen, and wowed audiences and critics alike.
In a review for The Hollywood Reporter, writer Todd McCarthy observed, "At the center of things most of the time, Lawrence remains compelling all the way. As in Winter’s Bone, she’s onscreen alone, or nearly so, a great deal, and she holds one’s attention unselfconsciously, without asking for attention or even doing much other than the task at hand."
'Dismal Receptions Of Her Recent Films'
Had you mentioned at that point in time that nearly ten years later, Lawrence's star wouldn't be shining as bright, you would likely have been met with scorn and amusement. Yet, even though she continues to work in the high end of the industry, many fans believe that she has not been quite the same for some time.
For one particular aficionado, this apparent fall from grace is attributable to the critical failure of her recent films. Writing on Quora, Daiwei Xue suggested, "Jennifer Lawrence’s recent declining popularity is probably attributed to the dismal receptions of her recent films. Starting in 2016, nearly all of her films have become critical disasters. Although all of them had made back its budget and made profit, most of the audience reception are less than stellar."
Another user poured more fuel to the fire, as they posited that Lawrence never managed to embody her characters in most of her films. "I think the more movies she's in the more obvious it is that she isn't that great of an actress. Don't get mad yet - she is a good actress in terms the professional sense, but 'Jennifer' is always present in all of her characters." Lawrence will very likely be paying no mind to all the naysayers, as she currently looks forward to her upcoming Netflix film, Don't Look Up, alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Meryl Streep, Chris Evans and Ariana Grande, among others.