ABSTRACT
The Latin American star system, like that in other regions, has emulated the Hollywood model in large measure because of its power to mobilize moviegoing audiences. This chapter argues that a substantive alteration of that meta-discourse on stardom in which key Latin America actors are seen not merely as "star texts", but to extend the metaphor, as centers or "constellations" of intermedial artistic and market networks in ways that transcend their status as mere entertainers. Existing scholarship suggests Latin American stardom is defined in four key ways namely: regionally, transnationally, ethnically, and televisually. The chapter analyzes contemporary film stardom in Latin America through three stars who represent not just a gender and geographical sweep of the continent (Brazilian Sonia Braga, Mexican Gael Garcia Bernal, and Argentine Ricardo Darin), but also the key discourses that define how Latin American stardom currently works.
