Why isn't Josh Brolin a Household Name?

     Josh Brolin’s prowess as a film actor is both unquestionable and well-proven, appearing in films adored by critics and audiences alike. Why then, do we so rarely see his name alongside performers of equivalent skill; the DiCaprio’s and Gyllenhaal’s. With roles as far back as 1985’s The Goonies, and 21 Jump Street two years later, Brolin is no stranger to the big screen. The mid 2000’s represented a resurgence in his career, appearing in Grindhouse, Planet Terror, and a leading role in the Coehn Brothers’ No Country for Old Men, which is widely regarded as a modern classic. Representing Brolin’s largest critical success at the time, he was shockingly overlooked come awards season. Despite No Country winning numerous Oscars, Golden Globes, and BAFTAs, Brolin’s name remains oddly absent less a SAG win for “Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture,” an aggregate category that he would share with six other actors (including Tess Harper with a collective sixty seconds of dialogue).

     A quick glance at his IMDB page shows an impressive list of films with surprising range. Yet, the posters of these films move us closer to what I think may be the root of the problem: Brolin’s name doesn’t sell tickets. Rarely, if ever does he receive top poster billing, something that makes sense for a film the magnitude of the MCU with dozens of well known actors. But for an actor as prolific as Brolin to only receive top billing in Hail Caesar seems peculiar.

     Could this be a question of paying attention to motion capped actors? Notably, Andy Serkis (Lord of the Rings, King Kong, Planet of the Apes) suffers a similar predicament. Thanos and Gollum have cemented themselves in cinematic history and the minds of moviegoers, yet many viewers would be hard-pressed to name the two actors who painstakingly crafted these performances.

     Regardless of whatever cinematic injustice I see in Brolin’s broader commercial appeal, he clearly has no trouble from a casting perspective; boasting a contract at Marvel playing Thanos in the MCU and Cable in the Deadpool franchise. With a role in Denis Villeneuve’s upcoming Dune adaptation and a mysterious self-directed role, his general level of recognition does little to slow his commercial success. In a film landscape that places such strong emphasis on the auteur, be it directors or actors, it’s time Josh Brolin became a household name.