Invasion of the actor-snatchers!

So I finally watched The Crucible this evening. I've had it out from Netflix for ages and, since I want to see something else on my queue, I thought I'd give it a look-see before I returned it. This movie isn't that old--it was released in 1996. But my initial thought upon watching this was, "What ever happened to Daniel Day-Lewis?" This guy won an Oscar for My Left Foot and was nominated for a few other films as well, but when was the last time you saw him in a movie?

That's when I realized it: he's been actor-snatched. Someone snatched up Daniel Day-Lewis and put Ralph Fiennes in his place. It's true! Think of any Daniel Day-Lewis role. Now picture Ralph Fiennes in the same role. Spooky, isn't it? Now, try it the other way--think of a Ralph Fiennes role and put Daniel Day-Lewis in it.

Then I realized that Winona Ryder has been snatched as well. While her shoplifting arrest may have kept her in the tabloids for a while, the biggest slap to Ryder's career has been the advent of Kate Winslet. Actor-snatching strikes again!

What about the rest of the cast? Jeffrey Jones has been spared actor-snatching, simply because he never was a great actor (and he was arrested for distributing child pornography--not a nice guy!) Joan Allen, who is sublime, is still around but it looks like Felicity Huffman may be knocking at her door.

I had to wonder, who are the Katherine Hepburns of our age? Who are the actors of today who will remain timeless? To be honest, I can't think of any. Tom Hanks has won 2 Oscars, but the guy is the "every man." He's the new Jimmy Stewart and, soon, there will be someone who will be the new Tom Hanks. Look at the nominees for best actor this year: Joaquin Phoenix (James Dean), Terrence Howard (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), Heath Ledger (Mel Gibson. Well, at least before he started making out with Jake Gyllenhall), David Straithairn (Robert Duvall) and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Of all those, Hoffman is the only original one and, frankly, that's okay. I could only take one of him. (Although he really was charming in Along Came Polly - not!)

Have we used up all our "pioneers"? Are we destined to have to watch carbon copy actors from now on? Have we run out of legends or will the actor-snatchers be the victors?