Celebrity star power: Do age and gender effects influence box office performance?

Abstract

Celebrity media exposure is an increasingly strong source of actor popularity and is a viable star power variable that focuses on the impact of celebrity, not acting talent. Using People to calculate an actor's popularity, we analyse how the gender and age of a movie's lead actors affect box office success using quantile regression. We find that male celebrity media exposure can positively impact the success of a movie, whereas female celebrity exposure tends to decrease box office revenues. The results also suggest that although it may be harder for older actresses to land a lead role, it is actually the older male actors who lack the ability to carry a movie. The results highlight that a linear regression may not be the optimal solution to assess the relationship between star power and box office revenues.