Jennifer Lawerence, America's beloved and awkward ingenue, is criminally overrated. Before the dedicated fans of Both the Hunger Games and X-Men obliterate me with comments, let me pose the question. When was the last time, Jennifer Lawerence, gave a particularly amazing performance? Better Yet, when In recent memory can we say she has really stepped into a new role that showed her range?

The Rise of Lawrence

I must clarify that there was once a time where I was with the celebrity who has commanded two franchises, largely because she gave her all during those early performances. Independent film's such as Like Crazy and Winter's Bone exemplified her ability to capture diverse characters with complexity and emotional nuance. These performances would carry her into franchise films such X-Men: First Class and Hunger Games, award her the commercial praise she earned during those performances.

Decline and Laziness

Where things seemed to go down hill was with the oscar winning performance Jennifer Lawerence gave in Silver Linings Playbook. A roll originally intended for the likes of Anne Hathaway, the 22 year old actress played the bipolar dancer opposite Bradley Cooper and found herself admitted to the hollywood A-List. Her performances in her franchise films would continue to decline, with continually disinterested performances in the X-Men Films, despite the writing continuing to cater to the Katniss Everdeen mark she had made. While doing so, Jennifer would continue to attempt to replicate the Oscar win by continuing to work with David O. Russell, however she has been unable to recreate such success with films such as American Hustle and Joy.

Financially, the films of Jennifer Lawerence have been slipping over the past few years. X-Men: Apocalypse, her most recent tentpole film, pulled in 100 million less in domestic projections, making it one of the least successful of the X-men films. Even the independent scene that she initially stared in AHS which ailed to see a boost from the actress with Flops like Serena.

While I have no doubt that Mrs. Lawerence is a talented performer complete with depth and acting range, her performances in recent years reflect the mentality of someone who has prematurely settled into the Hollywood A-list.

Poor Project Picks

While her performances in the last Hunger Games movies were strong, her complete disinterest in any role outside of a top billed has contributed to her decline. Her upcoming film, Passengers, she will be portraying a writer stuck in space as the ship continues to malfunction while she attempts to save the ship along side Chris Pratt. On top of a lack of challenge in that role, the film will be competing with the upcoming Star Wars film, which is projected to make 135 million in the opening weekend.

This lack of proper projects continues with her rejection of the second lead in the upcoming Ocean's Eleven Reboot. Playing second fiddle to Sandra Bullock, Lawerence would have found herself engaging in a dramatic, but comedic roll as a morally ambiguous thief and second in command. Since the role was not the lead, Lawerence rejected the role now occupied by Oscar Winner 'Cate Blanchett'.

Comeback

While I am harsh about the choices that Lawerence has made in recent years, I firmly believe that she can become one of the greatest if she is willing to make change. The Beauty of the dramatic arts for the actor is the ability to transition into new, challenging roles and finding something fresh to bring to an audience. Her counterparts such as Margot Robbie and Hailee Steinfeld understand this need to diversify, and have boosted their careers in doing so. Even her Divergent copycat, Shailene Woodley has learned this Lesson by balancing dramatic roles and pursuing a career on TV. She must be willing to try new things and be creatively ambitous with her work, because that's what brought us in. We as an audience want to see that same awkward, relatable woman try something new without fear, and I hope that she can see that potential in herself once again.