From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch

Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch
Slide Nr 1
They are the two biggest movie makers in the world: California-based Hollywood, and the Mumbai powerhouse informally known as Bollywood. Collectively, they have been the most prolific and successful producers of movies since the dawn of cinema, but historically they have always seemed distinct, separated by oceans, cultures and languages. However, a few stars have crossed the divide throughout the years, finding fame in another region by starring in an unfamiliar industry. Here, we look at the biggest names in film who have made the jump between Hollywood and Bollywood…

By Victoria Luxford

0/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 2
Irrfan Khan – Irrfan Khan was just 53 when he passed away in 2020. While he passed far too soon, he left a legacy of incredible acting that included hits in both Indian and American cinema. Having shown promise as a cricketer in his youth, Khan instead turned to acting and built a reputation as a Bollywood star in productions like Haasil (2003) and The Namesake (2007). US audiences may remember him best from his move to English-language films in the late 2000s, starring in Slumdog Millionaire (2008), Life of Pi (2012), and Jurassic World (2015). He remained a regular fixture in India as well, earning the coveted Padma Shri award for services to the arts in 2011.

1/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 3
Sylvester Stallone – It doesn’t get more Hollywood than Rocky himself! A giant of such action franchises as Rambo and The Expendables, he also brought his fearsome physique to 2009 Bollywood action-comedy Kambakkht Ishq, where he plays himself saving the heroes from a gang of tough-looking thugs. The stunts may be a bit outlandish (at one point, he pulls a parking metre from the ground and uses it as a weapon!), but they’re in keeping with the fantasy world that unfolds in the movie.

2/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 4
Amitabh Bachchan – Big B, Star of the Millennium… Amitabh Bachchan has many nicknames, and has been a towering figure in Bollywood for over half a century. Given the number of Bollywood productions he has starred in, and the success he has enjoyed, it may be surprising that it wasn’t until 2013 that he made his first appearance in a Hollywood film. Of course, the superstar would only work with the best, appearing opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in The Great Gatsby. DiCaprio himself was a fan, saying he was “honoured” to work with the legend.

3/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 5
Toby Stephens – A Bond villain in Die Another Day, an astronaut in Lost n Space, a god in the forthcoming Percy Jackson series… Hollywood star Toby Stephens has made a name for himself as a versatile actor in a number of different roles, and not just limited to American productions: he stepped into history as the villain of the historical epic Mangal Pandey: The Rising in 2005. His reputation for complex performances made him the perfect foil-turned-ally for star Aamir Khan, who played the title role of an Indian revolutionary.

4/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 6
Priyanka Chopra – Lovers of celebrity news may be more familiar with her as one half of a power couple with pop star Nick Jonas, but Priyanka Chopra was a star in her own right for years before they became a twosome. Having won acclaim in Bollywood with films like 2002’s Thamizhan, in 2015 she made history as the first South Asian woman to star in a US network show, the criminal drama Quantico. She also appeared opposite Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron in Baywatch (2017), and entered the sci-fi world in 2021’s The Matrix Resurrections. She also continues to produce both English and Hindi productions.

5/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 7
Sir Ben Kingsley – An English actor of Indian descent, Sir Ben Kingsley came to prominence in Hollywood for starring in Oscar-winning drama Ghandi (1982), and has since held a number of roles across the world. Considered one of the greatest actors of his generation, movie fans were very excited when he teamed up with Bollywood’s own national treasure Amitabh Bachchan for the 2010 Bollywood film Teen Patti, about a mathematics problem relating to a card game.

6/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 8
Suraj Sharma – Whether or not Suraj Sharma is a ‘Hollywood’ or ‘Bollywood’ star is open to debate, given that he started his career after being plucked from obscurity to star in 2012’s Life of Pi. However, the New Delhi native has since enjoyed success in both industries, having starred in Hindi films Umrika (2015) and Phillauri (2017), as well as appearing in US hit TV shows Homeland and Star Wars: Visions.

7/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 9
Will Smith – A Grammy-winning rapper, an Oscar-winning actor… and a Bollywood fanboy? Will Smith has worn many hats during his career, but while filming a series called Bucket List, he confessed to having always wanted to appear in a Bollywood movie. Karan Johar made his wish come true in 2019’s Student of the Year 2, which featured Smith dancing in a musical number for a few minutes in a brief but history-making moment.

8/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 10
Anupam Kher – When you have appeared in over 500 films, it’s likely that you’ll start attracting the attention of other industries. A veteran of the Bollywood world, Kher has worked with American directors like Woody Allen on 2010’s You Will Meet a Tall, Dark Stranger; appeared opposite Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook; and featured in historical drama Hotel Mumbai. A highly decorated actor with eight Indian Filmfare Awards, he continues to be successful in a number of languages.

9/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 11
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan – Some Bollywood actors have made cameo appearances in English-language productions, but Aishwarya Rai Bachchan can boast of working with some of the finest Hollywood has to offer. After becoming one of Bollywood’s biggest stars in the ‘90s and 2000s, the former Miss World then found success in Hollywood, playing it for laughs with Steve Martin in The Pink Panther 2 (2009), working with Colin Firth on historical action The Last Legion (2007), and putting an Indian spin on a British classic in 2004’s Bride and Prejudice.

10/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 12
Kal Penn – American audiences may know Kal Penn from his starring role in the Harold and Kumar movies, or appearing in TV shows House and How I Met Your Mother. He also appeared in the 2014 film Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain, directed bi Ravi Kumar and based on the industrial chemical disaster of 1984 that claimed thousands of lives and injured more than a half a million people. Considering Penn was also a part of US President Barack Obama’s cabinet for a period, it makes sense that he would have an eye towards political issues!

11/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 13
Indira Varma – Another star who can claim to have worked in many different industries, British-Indian actor Indira Varma first found fame in the 1996 historical drama Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, directed by filmmaker Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding, 2001). Featuring in film and TV shows in a number of countries, she would appear in Hollywood productions such as 2014’s Exodus: Gods and Kings – but it was her work on HBO phenomenon Game of Thrones, as the character Ellaria Sand, that would propel her to new heights as an actor and celebrity. Varma most recently featured in the latest Mission: Impossible film with Tom Cruise and on British TV show Doctor Who.

12/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 14
Brandon Routh – Sylvester Stallone isn’t the only American star who got in on the fun in Kambakkht Ishq: Brandon Routh, who played the title role in 2006 film Superman Returns and has been a veteran of many US movies and TV shows, also appeared in the film as the actor for whom star Akshay Kumar is a body double. Given Routh’s wide variety of roles across his career, it’s no surprise that the actor would be a useful addition to an already star-studded cast.

13/14
Culture
From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch.
Slide Nr 15
Shah Rukh Khan – Despite being about as big as one can get in Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan has been hesitant to make the move to America, despite many offers to work on Hollywood productions. He did, however, technically star in an American film, albeit one that had ties to his Bollywood work. My Name Is Khan was a drama directed by Indian filmmaker Karan Johar, starring Khan as a man travelling across the US to meet the president in the wake of the September 11th attacks. The talent and dialogue in the film may have been predominantly Indian, but the film was produced by Hollywood studio 20th Century Fox, making it their first production starring a Bollywood actor. Khan seems unlikely to move into English-language cinema, having cited his English skills as a factor in the past, so this may be the closest he gets to a crossover!

14/14
Editor's Choice
Movie Capitals: On Location In… Mumbai
One of the busiest and most fascinating cities in the world, Mumbai is no stranger to the silver screen. We’ve picked a few top filming locations for travelling cinephiles

20 Film Sequels That Were Better Than The Original
Hollywood sequels tend to make a bang at the box office ...and then fizzle into obscurity. Not so with these cinematic gems, still outshining their predecessors to this day

No Comments

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.

TV Capitals: On Location In… New York City

Looking to immerse yourself in TV history and visit real-life locations from your favourite shows? Head for the most-filmed city in the world: New York

Films For The Ages: 15 All-Time Family Classics

Whether they teach us about friendship, kindness and community, or simply offer a wild ride, we put forth our picks of the family-friendly movies that have never gotten old

Hollywood’s 10 Best Broadway Adaptations

Musical films may be having a moment right now, but these stage-to-cinema adaptations are the golden standard on the silver screen

Shades Of Fear: The 13 Movie Classics That Redefined Horror

This spooky season, look to the classics for your thrills and chills: we present our list of the best horror films ever made

11 Incredible Art Exhibitions To Catch Now

From captivating retrospectives to celebrations of spectacular creativity, these art exhibitions deserve a spot on your cultural bucket list for the coming months

15 Page-Turning Books Destined For Film

From fantasy to romance and Oscar-worthy drama, these are the bestselling books and underrated titles you should read right now – before they hit the big screen

15 Movies For Cosy Autumn Vibes

From the snuggly to the spooky and the beautifully atmospheric, these are the best films to curl up with this season

Quality Comedy: The 15 Funniest TV Shows Of All Time

If laughter is the best medicine, then these TV shows – both new and old – will cure whatever ails you

5 Minutes With… Author Azar Nafisi

Azar Nafisi, the multi-award-winning author of ‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’, has plenty to say about storytelling and imagination, as well as the dangers of today

15 Movie Sequels That Were Worth The Wait

Better late than never: these highly anticipated movie sequels kept fans waiting – sometimes for decades – before becoming classics in their own right

Page-Turning TV: The Best TV Shows Based On Books

To watch or to read? That is the question when it comes to these 15 compelling TV shows that made the leap from the page to the screen – some of which might surprise you

Threads Of Change

Vanessa Barragaõ on weaving tradition and sustainability into captivating works of textile art

Culture

From Bollywood To Hollywood: 14 Stars That Made The Switch

0/14

Culture