Why didn't Elizabeth Montgomery become a movie star?

[TMC]

Granted, she did decide to make a string of hit TV films, such as The Legend of Lizzie Borden and a remake of Dark Victory. But are there any which feature films that she could've been good in? Bewitched ended its long run in 1972 and Elizabeth was still gorgeous and well liked by viewers.

[Charley Knox]

She was probably hard to work with.

[Arfies]

I wondered about that myself. She did make a few movies in the 1950s and 1960s, though most of that time was taken up by television. Perhaps it has to do with Hollywood's age bias against women- in 1972, although still gorgeous, she was almost 40, and possibly found TV movies easier to get into than film.

[Dick York was Darrin]

I think that by the time Bewitched was finished, she was not at an age where becoming a movie star was going to happen. For women in particular, it is a small window, age wise, to become a movie star. And Montgomery's window, age wise, were her Bewitch years.

She did become a TV star. Which isn't anything to sneeze at.

[Dick York was Darrin]

Originally Posted by Arfies

I wondered about that myself. She did make a few movies in the 1950s and 1960s, though most of that time was taken up by television. Perhaps it has to do with Hollywood's age bias against women- in 1972, although still gorgeous, she was almost 40, and possibly found TV movies easier to get into than film.

I don't think it was "Hollywood's" age bias. It was societies age bias. And it is a bias for both men and women. Though, I agree that the bias against older women is more acute than it is for men.

[RetroGuy2000]

She was gorgeous, but I don't think most sitcom actresses of the 1970s made a successful transition to film. TV and film were worlds apart: different recording techniques, different production companies, and even different studios. It wasn't like today, where TV actresses can do films over the summer.

[Dick York was Darrin]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

She was gorgeous, but I don't think most sitcom actresses of the 1970s made a successful transition to film. TV and film were worlds apart: different recording techniques, different production companies, and even different studios. It wasn't like today, where TV actresses can do films over the summer.

I think that a movie star needs to become one before their 30th birthday, and Elizabeth Montgomery was 31 when Bewitched began. If she was going to become a movie star, it would have been before Bewitched. And as stated, she was close to 40 years old when Bewitched ended.

There is no shame in being ONLY a TV star.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by Dick York was Darrin

I think that a movie star needs to become one before their 30th birthday, and Elizabeth Montgomery was 31 when Bewitched began. If she was going to become a movie star, it would have been before Bewitched. And as stated, she was close to 40 years old when Bewitched ended.

I think you are right about age being a factor (and more so for women than for men, which is so unfortunate).

There is no shame in being ONLY a TV star.

No, indeed, and I'd never say "only" a TV star.

[rusty spike]

Maybe she was too recognizable as Samantha. Perhaps continuing the series beyond 5 years hurt her ability to get offers for other roles. While being married to a producer was favorable, perhaps getting divorced in 1973 made her a toxic asset.

Someone else previously mentioned that she may have had the reputation being difficult to work with.

[Arfies]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

No, indeed, and I'd never say "only" a TV star.

Exactly, and I think by being a TV star, she ended up more famous in the long-term than she would've been as a movie star. After all, her father Robert Montgomery WAS a movie star, and not nearly as many people remember him today as they do Elizabeth... because her work lives on in reruns and his didn't. "Here Comes Mr. Jordan," "Night Must Fall," etc. are great and he's great in them, but outside of Turner Classic Movies, where is someone new going to get introduced to them? But TV shows, they're rerun all over the place, often internationally, too, so one has that additional stardom.

Movies are often a product of their time, even if they're big then- unless they become something that lives on for generations, which is rare (like "Star Wars" or "Mary Poppins"). The glitz and glamor and prestige of the Hollywood red carpet is bigger than life... when the movie is released. But usually, their stars don't have the lasting impact that a television star would through reruns. After all, TV stars are invited into people's very living rooms on a regular basis.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by Arfies

Exactly, and I think by being a TV star, she ended up more famous in the long-term than she would've been as a movie star. After all, her father Robert Montgomery WAS a movie star, and not nearly as many people remember him today as they do Elizabeth... because her work lives on in reruns and his didn't. "Here Comes Mr. Jordan," "Night Must Fall," etc. are great and he's great in them, but outside of Turner Classic Movies, where is someone new going to get introduced to them? But TV shows, they're rerun all over the place, often internationally, too, so one has that additional stardom.

Movies are often a product of their time, even if they're big then- unless they become something that lives on for generations, which is rare (like "Star Wars" or "Mary Poppins"). The glitz and glamor and prestige of the Hollywood red carpet is bigger than life... when the movie is released. But usually, their stars don't have the lasting impact that a television star would through reruns. After all, TV stars are invited into people's very living rooms on a regular basis.

All great points, Arfies. As you say, TV stars are invited into our homes while movie stars... keep their distance. And we can watch hundreds of hours of TV shows while films rarely make it past a sequel, so you develop a relationship to not only the characters but the actors who spend years in these roles.

[Monliz]

Because back in the day you were either a TV star or a movie star, it wasn't like these days were you can be both things, and Liz was a TV star

[Arfies]

Sally Field successfully transitioned from TV to film in the 1970s. Dick Van Dyke was first famous on Broadway, then TV, then film. Don Knotts was famous on TV, then film. It was possible.

[TMC]

Why might an actor like Elizabeth Montgomery choose not to pursue film roles after a successful TV career?

Question: Why might an actor like Elizabeth Montgomery choose not to pursue film roles after a successful TV career?

If we go with Montgomery’s case alone:

1. She was never successful in films prior to going to television - When Bewitched ended she was 40 years old and most film productions were not looking for forty year female actors fresh from television. In fact, the trend was to go in the OTHER direction (Films to television)
2. She had plenty of money - Not only had she starred in a successful television for nearly a decade, Montgomery was hired to do a series of commercials in Japan that may well have paid her as much as she made on Bewitched. Montgomery had also been a producer on her series which meant that she was not hurting for money.
3. Montgomery seems to have been more comfortable in television and television film settings than in feature films - The remainder of her career involved television work with occasional forays into stage work which is where she met her final companion and later husband, actor Robert Foxworth.
4. She was typecast - Although Montgomery took a wide range of television roles (from accused murderer Lizzie Borden, to a White female detective having a torrid interracial affair with her partner portrayed by OJ Simpson) you always felt that she was about to wiggle her nose like on Bewitched and perform some act of magic. She was typecast and so likely was overlooked by productions where she may have shined.

Montgomery was typecast, she was wealthy and she was slightly older than feature film productions were seeking when she was “back on the market”.