# Celebrity (1998 film)
**Celebrity** is a 1998 American comedy-drama film directed and written by [Woody Allen](https://www.edgepedia.org/woody-allen), following a recently divorced New York writer and his ex-wife as their lives diverge through the world of fame, journalism, and television.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1084868-celebrity) It was produced by Jean Doumanian for Sweetland Films and distributed by Miramax Films.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1084868-celebrity)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director and writer | Woody Allen, his 28th film as director; he does not appear as an actor[2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/film/celebrity/) |
| Release | November 20, 1998 (US, wide), distributed by Miramax[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120533/credits/) |
| Runtime and rating | 113 minutes; rated R[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120533/credits/) |
| Cinematography | Sven Nykvist, shot in black and white (Panavision)[2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/film/celebrity/) |
| Lead cast | Kenneth Branagh as Lee Simon, Judy Davis as Robin Simon, Leonardo DiCaprio as Brandon Darrow, Melanie Griffith as Nicole Oliver[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120533/credits/) |
| US box office | $5,078,660 domestic, with a $1,588,013 opening weekend[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120533/credits/) |
| Critical scores | Rotten Tomatoes 43%, Metacritic 42, IMDb 6.3[4](https://movieradar.tv/titel/movie-9466) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The career and personal life of writer Lee Simon ([Kenneth Branagh](https://www.edgepedia.org/kenneth-branagh)) are at a standstill, so he divorces his bashful wife, Robin ([Judy Davis](https://www.edgepedia.org/judy-davis)), and takes a new job as an entertainment journalist. His reporting sends him to the most glamorous corners of Manhattan, yet moving between one extravagant party after the next and drifting through a string of hollow affairs, he begins to question whether his work has value. Meanwhile, the television producer Tony ([Joe Mantegna](https://www.edgepedia.org/joe-mantegna)) falls for Robin and introduces her to the world of celebrity.[5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/celebrity)
The synopsis from WestEnd Films presents the same story arc in reverse: as Lee, in the wake of his divorce, pursues the more unrestrained pleasures of his new liberty, his former wife undergoes an unlikely makeover from anxious schoolteacher into a prominent television talk show host.[6](https://westendfilms.com/library/celebrity) A Dutch synopsis adds that Lee, an unsuccessful journalist and would-be novelist, courts celebrities partly through his reporting and partly because he has a screenplay to pitch, and that each apparent success ends in disappointment.[7](https://waarkanikdatkijken.nl/celebrity-1998)
## Cast
The ensemble includes Kenneth Branagh (Lee Simon), Judy Davis (Robin Simon), Leonardo DiCaprio (Brandon Darrow), Melanie Griffith (Nicole Oliver), Hank Azaria (David), [Famke Janssen](https://www.edgepedia.org/famke-janssen) (Bonnie), Joe Mantegna (Tony Gardella), Michael Lerner (Dr. Lupus), [Bebe Neuwirth](https://www.edgepedia.org/bebe-neuwirth) (Nina), [Winona Ryder](https://www.edgepedia.org/winona-ryder) (Nola), and Charlize Theron as a supermodel.[5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/celebrity) Supporting and smaller roles include Dylan Baker as a Catholic retreat priest, Kate Burton, Allison Janney as Evelyn Isaacs, Debra Messing as a television reporter, and Andre Gregory as John Papadakis.[7](https://waarkanikdatkijken.nl/celebrity-1998) The film also features cameos by Donald Trump and fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi, who plays Bruce Bishop.[8](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/celebrity/cast/2030012289/) • [5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/celebrity)
## Production
Allen wrote the screenplay and directed; the crew included cinematographer Sven Nykvist, editor Susan E. Morse, and production designer Santo Loquasto, with Jean Doumanian producing.[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120533/credits/) [The Italian](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-italian) film commission's catalog records the photography as black and white in [Panavision](https://www.edgepedia.org/panavision) and notes that, as on other occasions, Allen does not act in the film; it also lists the setting as New York and the film's subject as the phenomenon of celebrity in its various facets.[2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/film/celebrity/) The Italian catalog rated the film "discutibile" (questionable) for salacious content, with themes of mass media, marriage and couplehood, politics and society, and power.[2](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/film/celebrity/)
## Release and box office
The film opened wide in the United States on November 20, 1998, through Miramax, earning $1,588,013 on its opening weekend and $5,078,660 domestically in total; [Box Office Mojo](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-office-mojo) lists no international figure.[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120533/credits/) In Spain, where it was distributed by Lauren Film, S.A., it was certified on February 17, 1999, released theatrically on February 26, 1999, and sold 662,032 admissions for a gross of €2,557,642.26.[9](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/en-us/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=4999&q=true) A DVD release followed on February 23, 2010.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1084868-celebrity)
## Reception
Aggregated scores place the film in mixed territory: 43% on Rotten Tomatoes, 42 on Metacritic, and 6.3 on IMDb.[4](https://movieradar.tv/titel/movie-9466) A Rotten Tomatoes critics' excerpt calls the black-and-white film technically impressive but judges the tale shallow and diffuse, with little to say about media-saturated life and obsession with fame; another critic writes that at its best the film seems cobbled together from parts of better Woody Allen films.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1084868-celebrity) Reviewers on the same page singled out Kenneth Branagh's performance for doing "his best Woody."[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1084868-celebrity) The distributor's own page quotes LA Weekly calling it "one of Woody Allen's finest."[6](https://westendfilms.com/library/celebrity) [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide) describes the film as Allen's dissection of modern celebrity culture.[8](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/celebrity/cast/2030012289/)
## References
1. [Celebrity, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1084868-celebrity)
2. [CELEBRITY, Commissione Nazionale Valutazione Film](https://www.commissionefilmcei.it/film/celebrity/)
3. [Celebrity (1998), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120533/credits/)
4. [Celebrity – Schön, reich, berühmt, MovieRadar](https://movieradar.tv/titel/movie-9466)
5. [Celebrity streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/celebrity)
6. [Celebrity, WestEnd Films](https://westendfilms.com/library/celebrity)
7. [Celebrity (1998), Waar kan ik dat kijken](https://waarkanikdatkijken.nl/celebrity-1998)
8. [Celebrity – Full Cast & Crew, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/celebrity/cast/2030012289/)
9. [ICAA Film Data, Spanish Ministry of Culture](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/en-us/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=4999&q=true)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of 1995 to 1999 › Black and satirical comedies › Released 1995 to 1998*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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