Richard Dyer's Star Quality Theory

Richard Dyer is an English academic currently holding a professorship in Film Studies at King's College London. He specialises in cinema, queer theory, and the relationship between entertainment and representations of race, sexuality, and gender. 

Richard Dyer's star quality theory is the idea that icons and celebrities are constructed by institutions for financial gain by being built up to target a specific demographic. His theory is broken down into 3 sections: Audience and Institutions, Constructions and Hegemony:

1) Audience and Institutions-
This is the idea that stars are used to for the sole purpose of making money, and the institution modifies the celebrities image around the target audience.

2) Constructions-
The idea that the star is built for an audience and is not an actual person. They are then built with a certain signature to them, making them stand out from other stars. One example of this would be Lady Gaga's loud and fashion sense which separates her from other celebrities.

3) Hegemony-
This is the idea that we relate to the star due to the fact that they have a certain feature or quality that we admire about them or share with them, which then develops an admiration which turns into idolisation. Some people may then replicate what they like about the star, which can have positive or negative consequences.