Acting on A Prayer : Stephen Baldwin’s Faith Based Return to Hollywood

Actor Stephen Baldwin is stepping back into the celebrity pool after taking a ten year hiatus. Baldwin took time off from acting to explore his religious faith as a “born again” Christian. Instead of hiding his faith driven path, he was very vocal and outspoken about his religious preference. He felt that today’s film industry was not fulfilling a faith based platform. Stepping out of the light was not only a personal choice, but a stand against Hollywood’s preferences. His career hit rock bottom but today Baldwin is trying to climb back to the top of a similar but new ladder. After acting in a vast variety of roles in a solid amount films ten years ago, he now is gravitating towards films based around his Christian faith. Although a step in a personally fulfilling yet compromised direction may be a temporary fix, will Stephen Baldwin be able to achieve continued success throughout his redesigned career?

Hollywood did not take Baldwin’s exit to acting easily. He was shunned by many directors for his outspoken nature. Those that he considered close friends would try to offer Baldwin as a suggested actor only to be mocked by fellow colleagues. The more Baldwin spoke on his exit, the larger joke he quickly became. Celebrities of all statuses are able to openly celebrate their personal beliefs but there is usually a consequence to every exposed figure. A temporary tabloid is one thing but being completely wiped off the map as Baldwin was seems a bit harsh.

Commonly, faith is something that individuals work into their already existing paths. However, Baldwin at one time, chose to make it his only path. This is partially the reason that directors laugh at the idea of letting him back in. Baldwin made a choice to back out for a personal reason that he is striving to hold onto when he comes back in. It is laughable in any career to obtain your personal desire of holding onto the best of both worlds. This case exemplifies that today’s Hollywood is a disposable game. There are no sidelines. Once you step out for any reason it is nearly impossible to get back in.

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