3. Stewart’s first success came in a film made at another studio
While at Princeton Stewart met and befriended actress Margaret Sullavan. In the 1930s Sullavan was a prominent actress on Broadway, and wielded considerable influence in Hollywood, though she preferred to act onstage. She lobbied hard for Stewart to play her leading man in a film she was scheduled to make for Universal Studios. The film, Next Time We Love, was a success with critics and at the box office with Stewart drawing mostly favorable reviews. The New York Times welcomed him, “to the roster of Hollywood’s leading men”. MGM took note, and cast him in a movie starring Clark Gable. Though not a leading role, Stewart’s performance again was praised by critics.
In all, Stewart appeared in seven movies filmed in 1936, mostly in smaller roles, though he held the lead role in what was then called a “B” picture. It was a commercial failure, despite its low production cost. His last performance that year was as the murderer in After the Thin Man. The film was the first sequel to the popular The Thin Man, and its success was guaranteed by the onscreen chemistry between stars Myrna Loy and William Powell. Compared to those two, Stewart was still a second-string star, though the popularity of the film brought him exposure to the general public, and mostly favorable reviews from critics.