Big screen prepares for 'starless summer'
Once, the summer months were marked by a stream of big-name stars opening their latest blockbuster films.
But this year, Hollywood’s favourite stars are not going to be coming to a screen near you, with Mel Gibson, Tom Hanks, Harrison Ford and Tom Cruise all on holiday.
Say goodbye to the A-list and say hello to dinosaurs, special effects, robots - and British actress Kate Beckinsale.
The daughter of Rising Damp actor Richard Beckinsale, she stars in Pearl Harbor, the film about the Japanese air raid which brought the US into the Second World War.
The $135m (£94.9m) epic, which also stars Ben Affleck, is likely to be the biggest film of the summer for the Hollywood studios - and the most expensive.
Its budget was slashed to bring it down to $135m, with most of it being spent on spectacular special effects.
Disney, who made the film, is expecting it will be a huge hit both in America and overseas, despite not having the big-name stars cinema-goers have come to expect.
‘‘It is a great love story and a great action story,’’ Disney Studios chairman Peter Schneider said.
‘‘It will be very successful,’’ he added.
The summer’s other major releases are also lacking in big-name stars.
The biggest parts in Jurassic Park III are being played not by actors, but dinosaurs, with the computer-generated monsters dominating the screen.
Special effects are also taking centre-stage in The Mummy Returns, whose biggest names are British actor John Hannah, MTV host Donna Air and WWF wrestler The Rock.
And the series of sequels appearing on British screens before the autumn will include American Pie II, Rush Hour 2 and Dr Doolittle 2.
But the summer’s biggest film for children is likely to be Shrek, an animated adventure with three stars - who are heard, not seen.
Comedian Eddie Murphy, Austin Powers star Mike Myers and Cameron Diaz provide the voices for the computer-generated tale of an ogre and a donkey rescuing a princess.
Hollywood insiders claim the lack of big-name films and the use of sequels are a bid to make bigger profits from the film industry.
People flock to see sequels if they have only seen the original on video, while big names demand big pay cheques.
‘‘They are trying to write fewer of those 20 million pay cheques,’’ said Katherine Styponias, a media analyst with investment firm Prudential Securities.
His view was backed by Mr Schneider, who said: ‘‘My mandate has been to make this business profitable.’’
