Can Bieber's 'Never Say Never' Break Pop Star Curse?

Can Bieber's 'Never Say Never' Break Pop Star Curse?

Commentary

By our guest blogger, Joel Crabtree

If I had one piece of advice to pass along to young pop stars (mainly Justin Bieber), it would be to stay out of film. And whatever you do, do not make 3-D concert movies.

Oh, wait. Unfortunately for Mr. Bieber, he's already taken that step in his career. Well, I guess it's a bad time to break the news to him, but I have a strong suspicion that there is a curse on all pop stars who try to make the leap to the big screen – unless you're Timberlake.

My first piece of evidence comes in the form of the “Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience.” Every time I write those words, there's an executive at Disney who shudders – but it has to be said.

At best, you could write off “The 3D Concert Experience” as a singular box-office flop, not even grossing $20 million domestically. More accurately, however, you could argue that it was the beginning of the end for Disney's Jonas cash cow.

Since the film, the brothers went from platinum-selling artists to barely being able to push their 2009 album, “Lines, Vines and Trying Times,” past gold certification.  Trying times, indeed, JoBros. On top of that, the trio had to shed some 2010 tour dates amid a crumbling season for concerts.

Maybe the young hoards have grown out of their JoBros obsession. Maybe their parents weren't committed enough to hear “Burnin' Up” another 10 million times, or watch the floppy-haired brothers in three dimensions. Or maybe -- just maybe -- it was the curse.

The second piece of evidence is Miley Cyrus and her alter ego Hannah Montana, another financial tour de force from Disney. Miley's much-anticipated “Hannah Montana: The Movie,” grossed nearly $80 million domestically – not a terrible haul.

But, with Miley and Hannah, it wasn't the film so much as the aftershock that have put her career in dire straits. Miley has made more headlines being photographed taking Salvia bong hits, grinding up on “The Last Song” producer Adam Shankman, making an ass of herself in interviews and being nominated for a Razzie Award. Tisk-tisk, Miley.

“Justin Bieber: Never Say Never” hits theaters theaters this Friday, Feb. 11, and the question remains whether Bieber can break the curse. Will he fall into the same trap that the JoBros did with their “3D Concert Experience”? Will he make poor decisions and self-destruct like Miley? I don't think so.

The deck is stacked against young Justin. He's been the butt of so many jokes and taken so much criticism that it seems as though he already has a target painted on him. However, I'm going to be the dissenting voice of my snarky generation and say that I'm rooting for the Biebs.

Timberlake has proved that breaking into movies is doable, you just have to be smart about it. Whether Bieber intends to one day work with David Fincher (ha … ha) is unknown, but if Bieber can just make it through this one, documentary-style 3-D experience, he'll be doing pretty well for himself – far better than his pop predecessors.

Sure, many people find him annoying, but he does seem far more genuine than any of the Disney-produced teen idols. If he keeps his head on straight, he might be able to keep his career going far beyond this teen-idol stage. Kind of like Timberlake.

So go forth, young Bieber, and break the curse.