It's not really a question for Richard Gere, who has exited the Hollywood fast lane to focus his attention (and his camera) on the Dalai Lama and his exiled followers.
Celebrity is a funny thing. Some people use it as a license to perpetuate adolescence and evade responsibilities. For others, celebrity is something to walk away from, as Debra Winger did at the height of her fame, when she wearied of Hollywood's hype and hypocrisy. But for Richard Gere, Winger's costar in the romantic classic An Officer and a Gentleman, fame is something to be used as a springboard for something even better: a lifetime of commitment to a world far beyond Sunset Boulevard.
Gere, who started out as something of a lightweight actor with good looks that seemed to outshine his talent, has become an international activist and humanitarian. He lobbies tirelessly for justice on behalf of the people of Tibet and works in India and other countries to devise strategies to contain the spread of the AIDS virus. He regularly meets with prime ministers and business leaders to trade ideas on the best way to use precious human and financial resources, and he is often found at top gatherings of scientists, academics, and politicians, where the future of the planet is discussed in earnest.

This whirlwind of activities has, to an extent, taken Gere out of the Hollywood fast lane. He makes fewer movies than he used to, sometimes staying off the set for a year or longer. But, curiously, the movies he does make are far better received than the flicks of his heartthrob years. Critics have found depth and humor - and a surprising ability to dance with flair - in his recent roles in Shall We Dance? and Chicago.