by Cheryl Marly

Created on: January 22, 2009   Last Updated: March 19, 2009

With dozens upon dozens of works under her belt, Juliette Lewis is one of the most versatile actresses, and one of the most overlooked, in the business today. She will coming back into the limelight this year in "Whip It", directed by Drew Barrymore. It also won't hurt that Oscar winning actress Marcia Gay Harden is in the film. Not to say that this will be an Oscar nominated movie, but her performance and modern day sex appeal, combined with a popular name like Drew Barrymore, will once again bring Juliette Lewis to the forefront of Hollywood.

Over the years, Juliette Lewis has worked with the biggest names and greatest actors in the industry, including Robert DeNiro, Jennifer Garner, Johnny Depp, and Donald Sutherland. So, the question stands; why is she rarely seen, or chosen for roles that she is completely worthy of? It's been because of past five or so years of being spoon-fed Mrs. Pitt, Britney Spears, Eva Longoria and others of the like (meaning those who just love the camera time). We've been in some kind of weird "bad entertainment" time warp and Juliette Lewis is just the person to bring respect back to Hollywood.

This girl has been in the business a while. When she was a child, Juliette Lewis did a lot of early work on television. You may remember her as Wayne's short-lived girlfriend, Delores, on the reflective 90's hit "The Wonder Years" or her role as Kate in the series flop "I Married Dora". Her leaping pad, though, was her role as Audrey in the classic comedy "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation", where she played perfectly the role of every family's terror, the annoyed teenage daughter.

The variety of roles Juliette Lewis has given us since then leaves us wondering, What hasn't she done yet? She was the vulnerable daughter in the remake of the psychological thriller "Cape Fear", in which she actually had us feeling concerned that the serial killer might get to her - even knowing she was only acting! She was the compassionate drifter girlfriend of Johnny Depp in "What's Eating Gilbert Grape" and she scared the holy-living snot out of us in her role as Mallory in the blood-fest, "Natural Born Killers". She even took on an extremely difficult and sensitive role of a retarded girl in "The Other Sister", where again, she mastered her gift. She even sings and has done voice-overs. Alas though, if she is like any other actress, she awaits that one perfect role to earn her a much-deserved Oscar.

In a Hollywood world, where reality rules, Juliette Lewis is the alternative - the genuine "real" thing. There isn't a role out there that she cannot perfect to a tee. She doesn't miss a beat and her brilliant acting makes us feel like watching her over and over. Though lately she seems to be on the "A minus list" in Hollywood now, in the future, she will be thought of as a truly remarkable part of film history.

With a style that's all her own, and an uncanny knack for adapting to her characters, the comeback of Juliette Lewis in 2009 is inevitably something Hollywood is due for, and desperately needs. We've seen enough of actresses overdoing their roles, preaching their politics, and saving the world; it's time for a pure, original and natural talent, like Juliette Lewis, to grace us again with her presence.

Learn more about this author, Cheryl Marly.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.