{{Short description|Group of people all having a high level of performance in their field}} {{about|the sports and entertainment industry term}} {{refimprove|date=December 2013}} An '''all-star''' team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry.
==Sports== {{Main|All-star game}}Sports leagues often organize annual ''all-star game''s, an exhibition game aiming to pit top players against each other. Typically, the games are held between teams representing a league's conferences, divisions, or nationality (such as domestic players against international players), with the exact rosters determined by either the league, a public poll, or a "draft" process involving honorary captains.
==Entertainment== ===Cinema=== The term "all star" is also used in films, often used as a form of publicity gimmick to promote the cast of a movie in which a number of high-profile actors appear, sometimes merely in cameo roles.<ref>{{cite web | title = Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey head all-star cast in 'The Butler' |publisher= Boston Herald| url = http://bostonherald.com/entertainment/movies/movie_reviews/2013/08/forest_whitaker_and_oprah_winfrey_head_all_star_cast_in |date=August 16, 2013| access-date = 2013-08-23}}</ref> An archetype is the 1956 version of ''Around the World in 80 Days''.
===Television=== In a similar vein to sporting events, some reality television franchises (such as ''America's Got Talent'',<ref>{{cite web |author=Rosy Cordero |date=October 7, 2022 |title=''America's Got Talent: All-Stars'' Greenlit At NBC; Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum & Howie Mandel Set To Judge |url=https://deadline.com/2022/10/americas-got-talent-all-stars-greenlit-at-nbc-simon-cowell-heidi-klum-amp-howie-mandel-judges-1235138423/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007180612/https://deadline.com/2022/10/americas-got-talent-all-stars-greenlit-at-nbc-simon-cowell-heidi-klum-amp-howie-mandel-judges-1235138423/ |archive-date=October 7, 2022 |access-date=October 7, 2022 |work=Deadline Hollywood}}</ref> ''Dancing with the Stars,<ref>{{cite web |author= |date=2012-08-13 |title='Dancing with the Stars All-Stars': Professional partners confirmed - Dancing with the Stars News - Reality TV |url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/ustv/s92/dancingwiththestars/news/a399081/dancing-with-the-stars-all-stars-professional-partners-confirmed.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120825050901/http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/ustv/s92/dancingwiththestars/news/a399081/dancing-with-the-stars-all-stars-professional-partners-confirmed.html |archive-date=2012-08-25 |access-date=2012-08-15 |publisher=Digital Spy}}</ref>'' ''Survivor'',''<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Ross |first=Dalton |date=February 4, 2020 |title=Jeff Probst on the biggest get for Survivor: Winners at War |url=https://ew.com/tv/2020/02/04/survivor-jeff-probst-winners-at-war-amber-rob-parvati/ |access-date=March 30, 2020 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite magazine |last=Ross |first=Dalton |date=January 18, 2020 |title=Survivor: Winners at War will feature all classic challenges from the past |url=https://ew.com/tv/2020/01/18/survivor-winners-at-war-challenges-john-kirhoffer-chris-marchand/ |access-date=January 23, 2020 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}}</ref>'' and ''RuPaul's Drag Race'')''<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-02-24 |title=RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 6 Moves to Paramount+, Along With Road Rules Reboot and The Challenge: All Stars |url=https://tvline.com/2021/02/24/drag-race-all-stars-6-paramount-plus-road-rules-challenge/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225041640/https://tvline.com/2021/02/24/drag-race-all-stars-6-paramount-plus-road-rules-challenge/ |archive-date=2021-02-25 |access-date=2021-02-25 |website=TVLine}}</ref>'' have held all-star seasons featuring notable contestants from previous seasons, such as champions, contestants popular among viewers, and notable contestants from international versions of the franchise. These can include entire seasons where the alumni compete against each other, or a spin-off competition with a different format. One such example—''Survivor: Winners at War''—marked the 40th season and 20th anniversary of the American version by featuring 20 winners from past seasons competing for an increased $2,000,000 prize, and incorporating challenges from seasons that its contestants had previously participated in.''<ref name=":0" /><ref name="two_million2">{{Cite magazine |last=Ross |first=Dalton |date=December 18, 2019 |title=Jeff Probst shares intel on Survivor: Winners at War |url=https://ew.com/tv/2019/12/18/survivor-winners-at-war-jeff-probst-season-40/ |access-date=December 20, 2019 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}}</ref>'' ''Survivor 50'' similarly marks the 50th season and 25th anniversary by featuring both all-star contestants, as well as aspects and twists of the season being determined by online votes.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Ross |first=Dalton |date=May 28, 2025 |title=Jeff Probst says last ''Survivor 50'' cast cuts were 'brutal' |url=https://ew.com/jeff-probst-says-last-survivor-50-cast-cuts-were-brutal-11743017 |access-date=May 28, 2025 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}}</ref><ref name="r1">{{cite magazine |last=Ross |first=Dalton |date=February 22, 2025 |title=Survivor 50 will allow fans to vote on putting key elements into the game |url=https://ew.com/survivor-50-fans-vote-on-putting-key-elements-into-game-11684537 |access-date=February 24, 2025 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}}</ref>
Another type of all-star format involves alumni from a domestic version competing against or among a team of alumni from international versions.<ref name="yahoo">{{cite web |last=Guertin |first=Lachlan |date=17 October 2024 |title=Survivor: Australia v The World 2025 cast has leaked: 'Most thrilling season' |url=https://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/survivor-australia-v-the-world-2025-cast-has-leaked-most-thrilling-season-224909103.html |access-date=24 January 2025 |website=Yahoo Lifestyle}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=James|first=Michael|title=Where's the money honey? No Prize money for Drag Race: UK vs The World winner|url=https://qnews.com.au/wheres-the-money-honey-no-prize-money-for-drag-race-uk-vs-the-world-winner/|date=3 February 2022|access-date=17 February 2022|website=QNews|language=en-US|archive-date=5 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705064627/https://qnews.com.au/wheres-the-money-honey-no-prize-money-for-drag-race-uk-vs-the-world-winner/|url-status=live}}</ref> ''Australian Ninja Warrior'' conducted a similar special based upon the State of Origin series in rugby league, consisting of five teams of alumni representing Australia's states.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-08-13 |title=Australian Ninja Warrior: State of Origin: meet the teams |url=https://tvtonight.com.au/2020/08/australian-ninja-warrior-state-of-origin-meet-the-teams.html |access-date=2026-03-03 |website=TVtonight.com.au |language=en-AU}}</ref>
Sometimes, all-star crossovers may be organized between contestants of multiple reality formats; the MTV series ''The Challenge'' was originally a competition spin-off of its reality shows ''The Real World'' and ''Road Rules'', and has traditionally featured cast members from both. Later seasons began to also include alumni from other MTV reality shows (such as ''Are You the One?'', ''Ex on the Beach'', and ''Geordie Shore''), and the show eventually expanded to incorporate alumni from non-MTV reality series as well.<ref name="avclub">{{cite web |last1=Alston |first1=Joshua |date=September 14, 2015 |title=How MTV's The Challenge became one of TV's most riveting workplace dramas |url=https://www.avclub.com/how-mtv-s-the-challenge-became-one-of-tv-s-most-rivetin-1798284279 |access-date=May 21, 2022 |website=The A.V. Club |language=en-us}}</ref><ref name="buzzfeed">{{cite web |last1=Wieselman |first1=Jarett |date=October 6, 2016 |title=The Most Influential Reality Show In TV History |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/jarettwieselman/real-world-road-rules-challenge-oral-history |access-date=May 21, 2022 |website=BuzzFeed |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-zY9DyooYMoC&q=The+Real+World+Road+Rules+spin+off&pg=PA137 |title=Remodeling TV Talent: Participation and Performance in MTV's Real World ... – Hugh Phillips Curnutt – Google Books |isbn=9780549747185 |access-date=January 3, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:cite|web|title=Challenge Veterans and Prospects: Meet the War of the Worlds Cast|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/3109178/challenge-war-of-the-worlds-cast/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190117000845/http://www.mtv.com/news/3109178/challenge-war-of-the-worlds-cast/|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 17, 2019|author=Jordana Ossad|website=MTV|date=January 16, 2019|access-date=September 2, 2019}}</ref>
=== Music === "All-stars" in music terms is referred to record labels or a music genre's top musical artists. An example of this includes the single "Pow 2011" by Lethal Bizzle in which all the featured artists are credited as "Grime All-Stars". Sometimes, labels organize such all-star sessions to release dedicated albums. Examples of this case are the collective This Mortal Coil under the 4AD label, or the Roadrunner United sessions by Roadrunner Records. The term is not equivalent to supergroup, which refers to a group made of already established musicians from other popular bands or with a successful solo career.
===Comics===
The All Star DC Comics was an imprint of ongoing American comic book titles published by DC Comics that ran from 2005 to 2008. DC has published two titles under the All-Star banner, featuring Batman and Superman. The premise of the imprint was to partner DC Comics' top tier characters with the most popular and acclaimed writers and artists.
==See also== * Ensemble cast * Supergroup (music)
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{cite web | title = All Star Ensemble Casts|publisher= Hollywood.com|author=Daniel Hubschman| url = http://www.hollywood.com/news/movies/7755925/all-star-ensemble-casts?page=all|date=Feb 14, 2011}}
Category:Sports terminology Category:Film and video terminology Category:Musical terminology