Should Jennifer Aniston Return to Television for Good?

Should Jennifer Aniston return to television where she first got her start? That's what some are asking over at Popeater.com.

With Jennifer Aniston's latest romantic comedy, The Switch, with Jason Bateman, tanking at the box office this summer and Jennifer set to team up with her former Friends co-star, Courtney Cox, in her night time drama, Cougar Town, some in the industry are wondering out loud if she should consider staying there.

It is after all, the medium that made Jennifer Aniston a household name and launched her very lucrative career.

To be fair to Jennifer though, she can blame her latest movie bomb on Sylvester Stallone. Everybody loves a sweaty, manly, action movie.

That's exactly what Sylvester Stallone's latest testosterone project, The Expendables, delivers. He's pretty much kicked everybody's cinematic butt with this one, The Switch included. But, what about her last three movies? What? You don't remember her last three movies? Yeah, exactly. But, let's run through them anyway, shall we?

Management
First, there was Management in 2008 with Steve Zahn. It was quirky, slow, a bit schizophrenic in the plot and more than a tad boring. I couldn't tell if it was supposed to be a comedy or a drama. With Steve Zahn, one would expect a few laughs, but it generated nary a one for me.

Love Happens
Then, there was Love Happens with Aaron Eckhart in 2009 - certainly better than Management. It was actually quite poignant at moments, relatively interesting enough to keep you involved in the story line, occasionally clever, but mostly cliché and predictable. Ho hum.

The Bounty Hunter
In 2010, she made The Bounty Hunter with Gerard Butler. I spent nearly the entire film trying to decide if Gerard Butler has a bono-fide lisp or not. I'm afraid he does and it is horribly disappointing. What's worse, after the film, 300, I'm worried that Gerard Butler has been cursed.

Most women will agree, he's steaming hot and more than easy on the eyes. But, unless he's portraying a strong, manly character like, King Leonidas in 300, (somebody, bring me some water) he's just this side of goofy and comes off as quite dim.

Anyway. Not even the hunky Scotsman couldn't generate enough heat or chemistry with Miss Aniston to make The Bounty Hunter worth the on-demand price. I give it two diplomatic yawns.

The Switch
As far as The Switch goes, I was rather looking forward to it and disappointed when the early buzz said it was another box office bomb for Jennifer Aniston. One would think that any movie with the funny, charming and very talented Jason Bateman would be a hit.

Even his moderately successful movies, such as Couples Retreat, with Vince Vaughn, are hysterically funny and entertaining. Yet, even Jason Bateman couldn't keep it from sinking.

Has Jennifer Aniston Exhausted the Romcom Genre?
I'm not sure what the problem is to tell you the truth. Everybody agrees the girl exudes an undeniable charm and charisma. She's quite lovely, and in some of her films she actually displays some serious acting chops. The 2006 indie film, Friends with Money comes to mind. Yet, she seems to be stuck in the career stalling doldrums with one flop after another.

Some may say her split with Brad Pitt knocked her off her game with all of the emotional toil she experienced and that she just doesn't have anything left to draw upon creatively. Though, others may say that the heartbreak could provide her with plenty of artistic wells of raw emotion to draw upon. Think Nicole Kidman post-Tom Cruise divorce in The Hours and Moulin Rouge.

Maybe Jennifer has jumped the shark with the romantic comedy genre and it's time for her to zig instead of zag. Julia Roberts certainly faced like challenges with her career back in her day as well. Getting married and having children was good for her. She was able to regenerate, coming back only to take up roles she found interesting and creatively satisfying.

Similarly, Jennifer Aniston's return to television, if she should decide to stay, might be just the fibrillation her career needs. Though she's definitely talented, a Meryl Streep, Judy Dench or Helen Mirren she is not and the chances of her career spanning forty years on the silver screen are pretty slim.

But, if not television, then maybe she can step behind the camera and become the next female Clint Eastwood or Ron Howard. The film industry is ripe for a great female director anyway. Besides, if Rowdy Yates and Opie Taylor can do it, hey, so can she.

Sources:

Imdb.com

"Once Jennifer Aniston Revisits TV Should She Stay There?" August 24, 2010. Popeater.com. August 26, 2010. http://www.popeater.com/2010/08/24/jennifer-aniston-career/