How Does 2005's 'Time' 100 List Hold Up Today?

I can't deny it: When browsing through TIME magazine’s list of the 100 Most Influential People of 2015, I can’t help but find myself asking the following question every now and again: “Really?” I know that the list is substantiated by subjective essays waxing poetic on the unquantifiable contributions of personal heroes — an especially vivid point in terms of the Artists & Entertainers recognized — but some of these choices seem just plain wrong. Is Kanye West really more influential than Ruth Bader Ginsberg? Or, rather — is Kanye West really more influential than Kim Kardashian?

But, then again, who am I to say whether or not this year’s slate of chief influencers will go on to validate these decrees of importance over the course of the next decade?

We don’t have the ability to see into the future just yet (though you can bet that the person who figures that out will land right at the top of his or her year’s Science & Thinkers section) but what we can do is look into the past to determine just how prescient TIME really is. How many of the Artists & Entertainers from 10 years back have gone on to sustain the glory magnified in the 2005 publication? What was this batch of honorees up to this past year, and which of them are still worthy of being decreed “influential”?

Clint Eastwood

In 2005: He had just directed Best Picture winner Million Dollar Baby.

This past year: Directed Jersey Boys (which we already forgot about) and American Sniper (which everyone you know saw, and had strong feelings about one way or the other).

Michael Moore

In 2005: He had just directed high-profile documentary Fahrenheit 9/11.

This past year: He tweeted something about American Sniper that got a bunch of people angry.

Hilary Swank

In 2005: She had just won the Best Actress Oscar for Clint's Million Dollar Baby.

This past year: She was in The Homesman… It’s a Western… Tommy Lee Jones directed it… No, it’s fine, no one else saw it, either.

Quentin Tarantino

In 2005: He had just recently directed Kill Bill: Vol. 2.

This past year: He saw the script for his second Western, The Hateful Eight , leaked online, and considered scrapping the project altogether. (It’s in the works now.)

Dan Brown

In 2005: While The Da Vinci Code had come out in 2003, it escalated in popularity over the course of the years to follow. It earned its film adaptation in 2006.

This past year: His books The Lost Symbol and Inferno are both in development as film adaptations. We’ve moved onto Gillian Flynn.

Dave Eggers

In 2005: Popularity for his first two books, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and You Shall Know Our Velocity! escalated; he had recently published his first collection of short stories: How We Are Hungry.

This past year: His book A Hologram for the King went into production for film adaptation, and his earlier novel You Shall Know Our Velocity! was announced as a separate vehicle for star Daniel Radcliffe.

Jon Stewart

In 2005: He was in his prime, riding high on Daily Show fervor; he had just released America: The Book (the first of his satirical publications).

This past year: He directed his first feature film, Rosewater, and announced that he’d be giving up his seat as the host of The Daily Show (which got surplus attention).

Alicia Keys

In 2005: She had won four Grammys for The Diary of Alicia Keys.

This past year: Some new songs, a new baby, but little new press.

Jamie Foxx

In 2005: He had won a Best Actor Oscar for playing Ray Charles in Ray.

This past year: Should we even bring up The Amazing Spider-Man 2, or is that being wiped from our memory just as it is from the canon?

Johnny Depp

In 2005: Pirates of the Caribbean... we had no idea then what we were getting into...

This past year: Weird costumes, silly accents, descent into insanity. Business as usual. Couldn’t have been much different back in ’05, could it have?

Hayao Miyazaki

In 2005: He had just released Howl's Moving Castle, which stands today as a fan favorite.

This past year: Released his final (and arguably best) film, The Wind Rises. The power of his work rings stronger than ever.

Kayne West

In 2005: He had just released The College Dropout, the album that solidified him as the hip hop artist to keep an eye on.

This past year: Well, he made the TIME 2015 list, so that should say something.

Images: Getty