Gaga is being typecast

[PunkTheFunk 122,949]

In television, film, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character, or one or more particular roles.

AHS: Hotel

A young and unsophisticated woman aspires to be an actress. She reaches her goal (of being successful) with the help of powerful men (Rudolph Valentino and James March), and transforms into a powerful and wealthy socialite. The man who helps her has a 'fatal flaw' (James is a serial killer). One of the men who helped her (Valentino) later meets his demise. 

AHS: My Roanoke Nightmare

A young and unsophisticated woman aspires to escape to the British colonies. She reaches her goal with the help of men (British soldiers, on whose boat she stows away), and transforms into a powerful witch. The men who (inadvertently) helped bring her across the ocean are killed (by her). 

A Star Is Born

A young and unsophisticated woman aspires to be a singer. She reaches her goal with the help of a powerful man (Jackson Maine), and transforms into a successful pop star. The man who helps her has a 'fatal flaw' (alcoholism) and he later meets his demise.

Funny Girl (Gaga's rumored Broadway debut)

A young and unsophisticated woman aspires to be a vaudeville star. She reaches her goal through her own effort, but falls in love with a powerful man (entrepreneur Nicky Arnstein). She transforms into a successful stage star. The man she falls in love with has a 'fatal flaw' (he's a gambler) and he later meets his demise (he's sent to prison).

---

Noticing a pattern here?

What do you think? Is Gaga being typecast as the bright-eyed-ingenue-turned-powerful-megastar whose success comes at the price of the men she's involved with? Do you even care?

[derpmonster 22,412]

No, not necessarily.

Despite some parallels in stories, all of these characters, especially AHS and ASIB, require very different acting skillsets. They're not comparable as characters.

The Countess is not remotely close to the "type" of Ally. Just shows that Gaga can play versatile roles.

[PunkTheFunk 122,949]

1 minute ago, derpmonster said:

The Countess is not remotely close to the "type" of Ally. Just shows that Gaga can play versatile roles.

But one could argue that the Countess pre-transformation and Ally are very similar

[GypsyBabe 22,836]

The real pattern is why do strong and talented women have to rely on men for success? 

[derpmonster 22,412]

2 minutes ago, PunkTheFunk said:

But one could argue that the Countess pre-transformation and Ally are very similar

I haven't seen AHS.  I don't know about the character. Still, she transformed and became something else.

Also, yeah they look similar because they're the same person.  

Pre transformation Countess looks like ARTPOPGa with brown hair. Ally looks like JoanneGa with brown hair

[AStarIsBorn21 3,714]

This is a bit of a reach. The countess and Ally are so different... 

4 minutes ago, PunkTheFunk said:

But one could argue that the Countess pre-transformation and Ally are very similar

She did one episode of Elizabeth pre-Countess. Obviously that’s not how people remember the Countess though. No ones gonna go “the shy and innocent one, The Countess”. 

[reysus 1,064]

Eh, I don't think it's typecast as much as this is a common trope for hollywood/female characters in general, not just roles that Gaga has had. Just the typical "girl falls crazy in love with a guy / girl has ambitions in career or life / love story falls apart" kinda thing 

[AStarIsBorn21 3,714]

9 minutes ago, GypsyBabe said:

The real pattern is why do strong and talented women have to rely on men for success? 

Hotel was all about her love relationships though, even Ramona helped make the Countess a stronger person, so not really a gender thing.

Roanoke was because the 1500s 

ASIB is a classic story from almost 100 years ago, so, yeah... 

That rumored play idgaf about it because it’s a rumor. 

Anyway most shows now a days make it quite obvious strong women don’t need men, especially AHS (which goes out of its way to show that strong men (Kai, Micheal) need strong women).

[sodrama 41]

Very interesting point! I'm wondering if it's not so much the characters that are the same, but rather the narratives her characters go through? The rise and fall of power/fame? Basically a reinterpretation of her own career.

Similarly, a lot of her music videos also tell the same narrative, of revenge/liberation

Paparazzi – she's in a bad situation (the boyfriend), defeats her problem (kills him), celebrates ("We love her again!")

Bad Romance – she's in a bad situation (brothel), defeats her problem (kills him), celebrates (sings as he burns, ****s his corpse lol)

Telephone – she's in a bad situation (prison lol), defeats her problem (escapes prison; helps kill), celebrates ("I promise")

Marry the Night – she's in a bad situation (the hospital, dropped from Def Jam, can't dance), defeats her problem (gets a new record deal, can dance), celebrates (dances in the street, her new dancer friends see her off to her meeting)

G.U.Y. – she's in a bad situation (left for dead by money-hungry men), defeats her problem (kills them/liberates herself from them), celebrates (clones good men)

John Wayne – she's in a bad situation (dangerous relationship), defeats her problem (kills the old her?), celebrates (moves on? this video was a little all over the place Lol)

[CautiousLurker 17,051]

14 minutes ago, PunkTheFunk said:

But one could argue that the Countess pre-transformation and Ally are very similar

I don't see it tbh... Ally is quite a bit different to pre-transformation countess in no small part due to the fact that Ally is a lot more fleshed out, while PTC appears only briefly, and feels more like a stereotype, maybe even a bit caricature-ish (not in a bad way)...

Either way, I don't think type-casting is necessarily a bad thing - there's an assumption that an actor should be able to play a multitude of roles and it's great if they can seamlessly take on and transform into very different characters, but there's also value and skill in being able to play a certain type of character well, and even if someone's in a niche, there's always space to improve and evolve within it...

[RAMROD 102,418]

She;s being a chameleon killer and a waitress once too, where's the type cast in that?

 

 

[CautiousLurker 17,051]

Just now, RAMROD said:

She;s being a chameleon killer and a waitress once too, where's the type cast in that?

 

 

Those don't count cuz the movies weren't very good 

[PlastiscGuy 20,477]

25 minutes ago, PunkTheFunk said:

But one could argue that the Countess pre-transformation and Ally are very similar

INB4 Ally is actually The Countess 

[RAMROD 102,418]

2 minutes ago, CautiousLurker said:

Those don't count cuz the movies were *cult movies 

corrected 

 

[CautiousLurker 17,051]

4 minutes ago, RAMROD said:

Edited

 

I want to argue but idk any good cult movie so... touché 

Edit: Wait, Evil Dead 2 is a cult movie 
And Donnie Darko  
And Rocky Horror   
And Primer  

YOU'RE WRONG, GOOD SIR