Disney Channel; Universal Pictures; Warner Bros. Pictures
Our collective obsession with celebrity has led to numerous explorations of that phenomenon in fiction over the years. Some of the best of these have come in the form of fictional pop stars. We've watched them rise to fame, fall from glory, be thwarted by their own egos, and just try to figure out how to live a normal life. The fictional pop star can thrive in any genre, as long as they've got the tunes and the adoring audience to back it up.
It's nearly impossible to narrow down a list of the best to grace our screens; inevitably, some truly legendary candidates have been left behind. But not everyone can be at the top. That's showbiz!
Nobody did it like Hannah Montana. For all the fictional pop stars Disney has given us between movies and TV shows, Hannah Montana is unquestionably thee most iconique of them all. The series spawned four seasons, a feature film, and dozens of original pop songs. It also launched Miley Cyrus's actual music career, and likely paved the way for her turn as a pop star on Black Mirror.
There's a reason you couldn't go anywhere for a year without hearing "Shallow" playing —on the radio, at the grocery store, or even just from someone humming the tune on the sidewalk. A Star is Born wasn't Lady Gaga's first acting gig, but it was undoubtedly a breakout performance that launched her into a new era of her career. Ally Maine, you will always be famous.
The Other Two took us through the paces of how to make a pop icon out of someone with absolutely no talent whatsoever, and you just had to respect the hustle. Poor Chasey didn't get to release much actual music after "Marry U at Recess," but he was a successful pop star by every other metric — and he had the bleached blonde hair and (mostly fake) bad boy tattoos to prove it.
Every iteration of Josie and the Pussycats belongs on this list, but we have to give this particular spot to the 2001 live action film band, for exposing a global conspiracy to brainwash America's youth. Josie, Melody, and Val rocked their way to the top of the fictional Billboard charts (with the help of Letters to Cleo singer Kay Hanley's vocals), ultimately overcoming endless subliminal messaging and product placement thanks to the power of friendship.
And a special shout-out to DuJour, who might have made it onto this list if only they had known more Metallica lyrics.
It was impossible not to root for The Oneders throughout That Thing You Do!, even when everything started falling apart. As much as we love pop star success stories, sometimes seeing the rise and fall of these fictional fan favorites just hits hardest. And if nothing else, the scene where they first hear their song being played on the radio should go down in fictional pop history.
Before Hannah Montana, The Cheetah Girls ruled the Disney Channel when it came to fictional pop — and rightly so. Raven-Symoné headed up this killer quartet, from their start as talent show competitors in the first film to an international competition for pop superstardom in Spain in the sequel. By the third movie, Symoné had opted out, making the group a trio, but they still held a special place in the hearts of DCOM fans.
How I Met Your Mother may have left a controversial legacy, but one thing every person who watched the show can agree upon is that Robin Sparkles was a brilliant highlight. When Cobie Smulders' character's past as a teen pop icon in Canada was first revealed, everyone sort of expected it to be a one and done joke. But after "Let's Go to the Mall," we kept occasionally receiving additional unearthed hits like "Sandcastles in the Sand" and "Two Beavers are Better Than One." And the world was a better place for it.
The Lonely Island was responsible for so many enduring Saturday Night Live musical skits; it only made sense they would eventually create a mockumentary casting Andy Samberg as the world's greatest popstar, Conner4Real. Though the film itself flopped, it's beloved among fans, and gave us some truly insane music videos to rewatch during middle of the night YouTube spirals.
Brie Larson knocked this one out of the park, long before her Marvel days. Envy Adams is the fictional pop star you absolutely love to hate. Manipulative, self-centered, and completely hypnotizing, it's easy to see how she broke Scott's heart prior to the events of the film. And still, this cover of Metric's "Black Sheep" belongs on all the playlists.
So much of the plot of Empire Records revolves around Rex Manning, although the washed up pop star himself takes a backseat to the majority of the other players throughout the movie. So he may not be iconic in the way that the others on the list are, but when everyone is still calling out Rex Manning Day every April 8th almost thirty years after a movie's release, that's history.
