accessibility: tv vs. movie star

alan cumming said in a recent interview that his fans from seeing him on tv treat him differently than those who know him from movies.

i don't think it's really the format that has dictated the change, but a general cultural decline of celebrity "worship" as it may be. i once read an interview with shia labeouf where he was complaining that there is no magic to celebrities anymore, like there was before. i agree. celebrities were once superhuman, perfect. any imperfections caused a serious scandal.

but now we see celebrities in all kinds of distress on tv. not only that, but the idea of celebrity itself has been diluted by people becoming famous for no real reason at all, or for being complete fuck-ups on television. have we become a culture of people laughing at other's misery? sure this has always been an element of humanity, but have we homogenized misery to the point where it is our expected form of entertainment?

so, dear cummander cumming, do not be alarmed that your fans are approaching you in a less worshipping way. it's just that they see you as a person, now, as well as an entertainer. the buffer between the art of acting and the people enjoying it has been worn away by the constant friction of reality tv and intrusive media. yes, when someone chooses to be an entertainer, they know that along with the benefits there are these deficits, but it just seems like they have gotten way WORSE then ever before. but, at the same time, so have the benefits. celebrites have never made as much money as they do today, or had as many privileges.

but if it helps at all, be assured, cummander, that i will not attack you, or demand to know your darkest secrets if we should ever meet. i will probably not even ask for your autograph. i might just ask if i could hug you, just for all the joy you have brought to my life.

i can and will continue to speculate about your life, and point out inconsistencies in your philosophies, but don't imagine that means i don't like and respect you. i suspect this is also true for other fans. try to enjoy it, because without this sort of attention, it would mean no one cares, and no one would hire you. and if you were an ordinary guy, you would have to deal with some other bullshit. everyone does. yours is just a little nicer of a problem than most people's.