The phenomenon of on-screen stars trying their hand on the Broadway stage isn’t anything new. The second half of the last century saw stars like Marlene Dietrich, Jane Fonda and Elizabeth Taylor making flashy appearances on Broadway in between filming some of the most lauded films of the day.
However, this trend has greatly increased in the last decade, with every Broadway season littered with A-list names – even if they have no previous on-stage experience.
This has led many from the theatre crowd to accuse producers of stunt casting for purely commercial reasons, prioritising revenue over stage acting ability. However, with several celebrities winning prestigious Tony Awards for their Broadway debut roles, is it really as reductive as that?
And what’s motivating the A-listers themselves? You don’t need to be a theatre nerd to know that the salaries for Broadway shows pale in comparison to those of blockbuster movie franchises. So, what is it that’s drawing the stars of major film franchises to the stage?
More importantly, who can you see currently swapping the screen for the stage in New York City? We'll give you a hint; there are some familiar faces from the Harry Potter and MCU franchises...
Broadway's new star-studded era
While celebrities have always been a big presence on Broadway, in recent years we’ve seen this trend taken to the extreme. You just need to look at some of the most successful productions of the last few years to see the prevalence of celebrity-led productions: Daniel Radcliffe in Merrily We Roll Along, Sarah Snook in The Picture of Dorian Gray, Nicole Scherzinger in Sunset Boulevard, Nick Jonas in The Last Five Years, Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal in Othello, Sadie Sink in John Proctor Is the Villain, to name just a few.
In a world where people are less likely to spend money due to the cost-of-living crisis and are offered plenty of entertainment opportunities within the four walls of their home, those in charge of Broadway’s financial decisions are leaning more and more into the siren song of an A-list celebrity’s appeal.
For many producers, the bottom line is recuperating the money spent on producing the show – and if celebrity casting is needed to do that, then so be it. This is especially seen to be the case in the post-COVID Broadway landscape, where new measures need to be taken to both recuperate lost revenue and maintain audience interest in the struggling industry.
Celebrity casting appears to get the job done. A 2022 paper from the Ivey Business School found that the inclusion of a celebrity can improve the revenue of a Broadway play in a given week by an average of $250,000. This is due to the intertwining factors of increased ticket sales due to celebrity appeal, as well as productions charging a higher price justified by seeing an A-lister on stage.
This trend also reflects the growing relationship between the Hollywood and Broadway industries, which has seen the emergence of many screen-to-stage adaptations in recent years, from musicals like Catch Me If You Can, Mrs Doubtfire and Bonnie & Clyde, to plays including Dog Day Afternoon. For the Broadway decision-makers, a tried-and-true Hollywood formula reduces financial risk, while simultaneously increasing remake potential and renewing appetite for the original film.
Stunt casting or star casting?
Casting a household name in a Broadway production, especially when it’s their first time on the big stage, begs the question of whether it’s star casting or stunt casting. To put it another way, is the actor being cast due to their talent or as a financial incentive to get bums on seats, regardless of their on-stage acting chops?
Casting a Hollywood star on Broadway, especially when they’re part of an established franchise like Bond or the MCU, can lead to fans of that actor or series purchasing a ticket to a Broadway show for the first time. Not only does this increase ticket sales for an individual production, but it can also lead to the development of a lifelong love for the theatre in someone who wasn’t previously interested in attending.
For someone who doesn’t have previous experience with the medium of on-stage acting, seeing a familiar face can provide a sense of trust. This is particularly true when it comes to a production that isn’t based on already-existing IP. When faced with entirely new material, audiences' scepticism about the quality of the work can be assuaged by the sense of trust that comes with attaching a familiar face to a new project. The prestige of a certain actor can reassure audiences that going to see this production will be time and money well spent – something that is absolutely necessary in today’s attention economy.
But speaking of money, celebrity casting often leads to inflated ticket prices, as people, especially fans of the actor in question, are willing to pay a lot more money to see someone they admire on the stage. While this is often beneficial to the production, it means that fans of the work, as opposed to the actor, are often priced out of seeing new Broadway productions.
While celebrity casting brings in new fans to the theatre, a rising tide doesn’t necessarily lift all boats. The trend of shows relying on celebrity cast members to drive ticket sales is worrying for new and less-established actors, who fear that their raw talent alone may not be enough to merit casting in this cut-throat environment. Theatre actors who have spent years in the business but are far from being household names may feel animosity towards the fact that someone with little to no stage experience can come straight in and headline a Broadway show without paying their dues.
However, initial scepticism can be eased by the emerging of real on-stage talent. While this isn’t always the case (see: Julia Roberts in Three Days of Rain, Brendan Fraser in Match), Hollywood stars making their Broadway debut have often received wide critical acclaim, or even Tony Awards, in the case of Nicole Scherzinger (Sunset Boulevard) and Scarlett Johansson (A View from the Bridge).
It is universally agreed that acting on stage requires a vastly different approach to acting on screen, which is part of what makes Broadway so appealing for those working towards developing their craft. With this in mind, it can be reductive to assume that an A-list film actor trying their hand at stage acting is merely putty in a producer’s hands, rather than an artist honing their craft and someone capable of delivering a performance of great magnitude.
Broadway's enduring appeal for actors
When it comes to stage acting versus screen acting, the differences are numerous. There are no second takes on a Broadway stage, actors can be performing the same show up to eight times a week and the reaction of the audience to your performance can be experienced in real-time. Additionally, during a run of theatre shows, a performer can make different choices in different performances which will enable them to develop an arc of characterisation not just throughout one performance, but throughout an entire run.
Speaking exclusively to Radio Times, Alfred Enoch – who may best known to audiences for his roles as Dean Thomas in Harry Potter and Wes Gibbins in How to Get Away with Murder but is an extensive theatre actor – underlines the importance of theatre as an event, as well as a distinct form of acting.
He said: "Theatre is an event. The fact that different kinds of people come into a space together and you experience it collectively, is the bread and butter of storytelling. You tell a story, and the people you're telling it for and with are the important thing. They're in the room creating it with you.
"Their engagement forms what you're doing, and it's a palpable thing, which it obviously isn't if it's through a screen. The societal necessity of that is huge. We don't have enough spaces that we go into in large numbers and experience big questions around what it is to love, have responsibility, live up to expectation – all of these massive existential questions that operate at some level in all of our lives are explored in a space where they can be explored and expanded upon and looked at safely and collectively."
The prestige of stage acting is also recognised by the Tony Awards, one of four awards required to reach the illustrious EGOT status (actors who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony). For many actors or musicians working towards cementing themselves in history, the lure of a Tony could be enough to tempt them to the Broadway stage.
Prestige and accolades aside, many actors are turning to Broadway or other global stages as they can no longer find the roles they want in film and TV. According to FilmLA, only 13 TV pilots shot in LA last quarter, which is the lowest number ever observed by the group.
And the TV pilots and films that do get made? Due to the instability of the industry, executives are less likely to take risks on more experimental formats, leaving actors with limited chances to flex their muscles in more challenging roles.
Just a quick glance at the box office listings reveals a preference for safer choices; established franchises and remakes, rather than original concepts and experimental films. Of course, Broadway is not immune to this trend, given the prevalence of direct film adaptations over original new work. However, with new and original work flourishing in 2026, such as Obsession, Backrooms and Hoppers in the film world and the enduring appeal of Titanique and Operation Mincemeat on Broadway, hopefully this trend is on the way out.
Top 5 Hollywood stars to currently see on Broadway
Tom Hiddleston in Much Ado About Nothing
Loki himself is headed to the Broadway stage later this year in the Stateside transfer of Jamie Lloyd’s Much Ado About Nothing. This production went down a treat in London, earning a five-star review from , so you’re sure to have equally as good a time seeing it across the pond.
Hiddleston is an on-stage heavyweight, with the roles under his belt including Hamlet and Coriolanus, making his Broadway debut in 2019 as Robert in Harold Pinter's Betrayal.
Buy Much Ado About Nothing Broadway tickets at Broadway Direct
While best known for his role as Sheldon in The Big Bang Theory, Jim Parsons has had memorable parts in Hidden Figures, The Boys in the Band, The Muppets and more. Plus, he's appeared in numerous stage productions including Our Town, A Man of No Importance and Mother Play.
Until 20 September, you can catch Jim Parsons as Ruth DeWitt Bukater in Titanique, the fabulously camp Celine Dion-based retelling of the story of Jack and Rose from Titanic.
Buy Titanique Broadway tickets at TodayTix
Notable Harry Potter alum Tom Felton is joining the HPU once again, reprising his role of the original bad boy Draco Malfoy. This time, he’s playing Draco all grown up in the Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, donning his robes until 3 January 2027.
This show will mark Felton's Broadway debut, having previously starred in the West End production of 2:22 A Ghost Story.
Joe Keery in Other Desert Cities
From his starring role as Steve in Stranger Things to achieving several viral hits under musical moniker Djo, Joe Keery has become a very familiar face over the past few years. You can catch him from 29 September onwards in Other Desert Cities, playing a Pulitzer Prize finalist following the dark secret of a politically connected family.
Having played a number of roles in small productions, this will be Keery's first major stage role.
Buy Other Desert Cities Broadway tickets at ATG Tickets
Crystal, best known for his roles in When Harry Met Sally and The Princess Bride, will be starring in an autobiographical one-man play, following the experience of losing his family home in the 2025 Palisades fires.
This isn't Crystal's first one-man autobiographical show, as his play 700 won both a Special Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award. Crystal also received a Tony nomination for his role in Mr Saturday Night in 2022.
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