IMDb.com releases list of top 25 stars of 2009

IMDb.com, Inc. (www.imdb.com), the authoritative source of information on movies, TV and celebrities, and a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), today unveiled the top 25 stars of 2009 as determined by the site's more than 57 million unique monthly visitors. For complete details on this year’s A-listers visit www.imdb.com/starmeter and for the Top 100 STARmeter list for 2009 and 2008 visit http://www.imdb.com/features/rto/2010/starmeter_full.

Johnny Depp may be People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” but Robert Pattinson, who plays teen vampire Edward Cullen in the wildly popular “Twilight” saga, is STARmeter’s No. 1 celebrity. STARmeter, a tool that ranks celebrities’ popularity among IMDb.com’s visitors over the year, reported that Pattinson attracted the most interest, vaulting him from No. 33 on last year’s list, to the top spot for 2009, ending Johnny Depp’s five-year domination at No. 1.

Pattinson isn’t the only “New Moon” star on the rise, however. Kristen Stewart, who plays Edward’s soul mate Bella, is at No. 2. Stewart’s ascendency isn’t as abrupt or rapid as Pattinson’s. She was No. 8 on last year’s STARmeter ranking, registering more quickly with users with the first film in the series, “Twilight,” than her co-stars.

Depp didn’t fall far down the charts, however, and is in the No. 3 slot, a fairly impressive ranking, considering his last two films, this summer’s “Public Enemies” and last year’s “Sweeney Todd,” underwhelmed both critically and financially.

Megan Fox, the outspoken bombshell from the biggest box-office draw of the year, “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” is at No. 4, the spot held last year by Brad Pitt (who slips to No. 6).

“Team Jacob” didn’t disappoint him as Taylor Lautner, who plays the shirtless lycanthrope Jacob Black, again from “New Moon,” rounds out the top five. Lautner bumps out last year’s No. 5, Angelina Jolie, who ends up at No. 12.

“New Moon’s” representation didn’t end there. Numerous other actors from the film appear in the top 25, underscoring “New Moon’s” popularity. Dakota Fanning, who plays the Volturi vampire Jane, is at No. 8; Ashley Greene, who plays Edward’s effervescent sister Alice is at No. 11; Nikki Reed, Edward’s brooding sister Rosalie, is at No. 15 and Jackson Rathbone, who plays Jasper, is just outside of the top 25 at No. 26.

There were some notable appearances and notable absences in the top 25 as well:

Zooey Deschanel is at No. 9, up from No. 50 last year, likely on the strength of “(500) Days of Summer.”

Ryan Reynolds continues to prove popular at No. 10, helped by the strength of “Wolverine” and “The Proposal” but very much owing to his own star power as well. His respective co-stars in those films did not see the same lift, as Hugh Jackman is at No. 34 and Sandra Bullock at No. 47.

Ellen Page got knocked down in the rink and in the box-office competition with “Whip It” and fell from No. 17 last year to No. 82.

Jessica Alba went from No. 13 to No. 69 and James McAvoy, who was at No. 18 last year, fell off the top 100 entirely.

Also of interest is the notable absence of the cast of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” from the top 25. Though the film was a box-office smash, Emma Watson, who plays Hermione Granger, moved from No. 42 to No. 53 and Daniel Radcliffe, Harry himself, slipped from No. 41 to No. 73.

“STARmeter is a fascinating indicator of what’s actually of interest to our users,” said Keith Simanton, managing editor, IMDb.com. “In 2005 we couldn’t figure out why the young actor that played Cedric Diggory, a relatively minor role in ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,’ showed up in the top 10 of our weekly STARmeter charts. Now that actor, Robert Pattinson, is No. 1. STARmeter registers something that may otherwise be imperceptible: genuine, popular interest – a kind of charisma indicator. This year’s version is Jensen Ackles, who plays one of the brothers on the TV show ‘Supernatural.’ He comes in at No. 87.”

Below is a full list of the year’s Top 25 celebrities and the Top 20, 25 and Under.


STARmeter Top 25 for 2009: STARmeter Top 20, 25 and Under:
1. Robert Pattinson 1. Robert Pattinson
2. Kristen Stewart 2. Kristen Stewart
3. Johnny Depp 3. Megan Fox
4. Megan Fox 4. Taylor Lautner
5. Taylor Lautner 5. Dakota Fanning
6. Brad Pitt 6. Ashley Greene
7. Christian Bale 7. Nikki Reed
8. Dakota Fanning 8. Shia LaBeouf
9. Zooey Deschanel 9. Scarlett Johansson
10. Ryan Reynolds 10. Miley Cyrus
11. Ashley Greene 11. Jackson Rathbone
12. Angelina Jolie 12. Zac Efron
13. Gerard Butler 13. Kellan Lutz
14. Leonardo DiCaprio 14. Hayden Panettiere
15. Nikki Reed 15. Emma Watson
16. Shia LaBeouf 16. Selena Gomez
17. Scarlett Johansson 17. Keira Knightley
18. Tom Cruise 18. Olivia Wilde
19. Miley Cyrus 19. Daniel Radcliffe
20. Seth Rogen 20. Michael Cera
21. Nicolas Cage
22. Will Smith
23. Clint Eastwood
24. Heath Ledger
25. Jennifer Aniston

Available through IMDb Pro (pro.imdb.com), IMDb.com’s subscription service, STARmeter ranks celebrities’ weekly popularity based on the actual search behavior of more than 57 million industry professionals and entertainment enthusiasts who use IMDb.com each month. STARmeter does not reflect box-office performance or critical assessments. The list of the year’s top 25 and top 100 celebrities is an aggregate of the 2009 weekly STARmeter rankings.