New hotness is a term for sliding a "new/hot" actor into a role that doesn't actually find them, or a director being able to direct a film with very little experience in the genre.
Tommy Lee Jones as "Two-Face" in "Batman Forever" is my go-to example. He was just coming off of a powerhouseperformance in "The Fugitive" and they capitalized off of the power of new hotness.
Look around, once you see it, you will find it everywhere.
Why did they cast so-and-so as that role in that movie?
Me: New hotness. They were just coming off a breakout performanceand the studio thought it would get #asses in seats.