By SAMANTHA ETTUS
Scripps Howard News Service
08-MAR-06

This year's Oscar winners have a decidedly new independence in comparison to their predecessors. Representing the new generation in Hollywood are four stars that are intensely committed to their craft.  These Oscar winners don't rely on burning the midnight oil at LA clubs to get attention. Instead, Reese Witherspoon, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Rachel Weisz have rich lives both on screen and off camera.

George Clooney
A cross between Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson, Clooney has now cemented his place as the next generation's talented heartthrob.  When accepting the award for best supporting actor in Syriana, Clooney delivered a speech brimming with intelligence and tact. He has achieved a level of respect both with his colleagues and fans alike so when he speaks we listen. Clooney's rise from TV hunk to acclaimed director and actor is an anomaly in Hollywood, a town notorious for pigeonholing talent into TV or film. Not since Tom Hanks has any actor made as dramatic a leap as Clooney and his Oscar win ensures that he will be in control of his destiny, a rare feat in Hollywood.

Reese Witherspoon
The great news for aspiring actresses in Hollywood is that Witherspoon didn't have to shed her clothes to win an Oscar. Rather than inhabiting the role of prostitute, doting wife, or girlfriend, Witherspoon snagged the Oscar by playing a strong woman with a rich character, who balanced her career with raising children as a single mother.  At age 30, Witherspoon's real life could be considered as accomplished as June Carter's. In addition to being an Oscar winner, she has a healthy marriage, two children, and a number of big screen successes behind her. What Witherspoon boasts is an incredible range. She was equally as convincing as June Carter as she was playing Elle Woods in Legally Blonde.  Her next film has her back in the funny girl role. Witherspoon would be wise to continue to walk the line between comedic films and dramas.

Philip Seymour Hoffman
Character actors everywhere are rejoicing over 38 year old Seymour Hoffman's win. His victory proved that you don't need to have Clooney good looks to win a statuette. Seymour Hoffman's rise has been steady and substantive, taking on decidedly varied roles on his way up.  Capote was the first time that a film relied upon Seymour Hoffman's performance as leading man.  He spent months preparing himself to play literary genius, Truman Capote, losing more than 40 pounds and rehearsing his mannerisms to convincing perfection. Hoffman's acceptance speech gave us a window into his personal life and the public will certainly want more of it. Seymour Hoffman's will need to reveal more of himself to the voracious media while maintaining his commitment to his personal space he has used to hone his craft.

Rachel Weisz
Weisz was seven months pregnant when accepting her award for best supporting actress in The Constant Gardner.  Given the film's subject matter, she could have made a significant political statement with her speech but she stuck with a staid yet powerful message instead. Weisz takes her craft seriously and this is evident in both the work she chooses and her off camera persona.  Engaged to film director Darren Aronofsky, Weisz is notoriously anti-Hollywood, dismissing parties for evenings at home. We suspect these are spent with a glass of wine and a good book, an image that only enhances our enjoyment of her.  To capitalize on Oscar, Weisz, an actor who is refreshingly content with herself, needs to do nothing different than she already does.  

Remember: the most dependable road to the top is to treat your brand as your greatest asset.

(Samantha Ettus' latest book, "The Experts' Guide to Life at Home" (Random House) is now in bookstores. She welcomes your comments at Samantha@celebrityassets.com.)