“Celebrities” and “labour organising’” are two terms and spheres of influence that don’t usually cross over, but the writer’s strike changed all of that. Now we’re seeing celebrities joining protests on the streets of LA and New York, walking out of premieres for their own films, and fundraising to help strike-impacted crew. From caterers to costume designers, to actors and directors, there have been moments of genuine solidarity between people across the industry, regardless of platform or level of fame.
There was one celebrity, however, who appeared to ignore the memo. Earlier this month Drew Barrymore announced her plans on social media to resume her talk show during the strikes – a move that her critics said amounted to crossing a picket line. After facing backlash, she reneged on the decision to continue the show, but only after publishing a public apology in which she doubled down on the original decision. “My intention has never been to hurt or upset anyone,” she said in the now-deleted video. “That’s just not who I am. I’ve been through so many ups and downs in my life – and this is one of them.”
Unsurprisingly, the star’s apology did not go down well. Neither did the stripped-back aesthetic of her video, described by one writer as a “poor cosplay”. Just as with Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis’ recent apology video – which used a similarly muted backdrop – the public has been quick to see through these hollow attempts at relatability. Both efforts at damage control have only served to throw fuel onto an already-blazing fire.
The response to Drew Barrymore’s scabbing speaks to a growing contempt of celebrity culture. It was a feeling that came to fore during the pandemic, when the likes of Ellen DeGenres joked that being quarantined inside her Hollywood mansion “felt like jail”, or when Kim K surprised her closest inner circle with a trip to a private island where they could “pretend things were normal”. Almost single-handedly, Gal Gadot tipped this contempt into full-blown public outrage with her “Imagine” video. The video was a cultural reset (the bad kind) that paved the way for rallying cries of ‘eat the rich’ to enter the mainstream.
Unfortunately for those delicious rich, since “Imagine” things have only become worse, largely speaking. The pandemic made the super rich even richer, while the average person struggles to make ends meet amid soaring inflation. For many, rising inequality has killed the appeal of seeing celebrities flaunt their wealth. Where once people enjoyed getting a glimpse inside celebrities’ lavish lives in the pages of glossy magazines or shows like MTV Cribs and Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, for many, this is now no longer the case. Indeed, the days of celebrating celebrities not just for their talent, but for their wealth in itself, appear to be dying.
Francesca Sobande, a writer and senior lecturer in Digital Media Studies at Cardiff University, agrees that attitudes to celebrity culture have shifted over recent years. She thinks this partly comes down to the increased media coverage of industrial action, protests and activism. “The contrast between that and the life of excess that celebrities are associated with seems especially stark,” she says.
In one viral video liked over 617,000 times, TikTok user Ally Rooker sums up the disconnect between celebrities and the public laid bare by Drew’s apology. “Celebrities seem to be completely unaware of the class consciousness the public have gained over the past, I don’t know, five years,” she says. In the video, she speculates that being inundated with photos of celebrities’ extravagant lives via social media has fundamentally changed public attitudes. “[Celebrities] let the secret out,” the creator says. “They let us see how big the gap is between the way that we live, and the way that they live.”
If there was ever any doubt that social mobility is a myth, and that hard work does not make you rich, then the last few years have confirmed it. This may also explain why the mood toward celebrity wealth and status is changing. As one comment on Ally Rooker’s video reads: “On [some] level we thought it was attainable… I thought if I worked hard I could also play hard in life.”
But as Francesca points out, the backlash to Drew’s video isn’t just a critique of her wealth. “It is also prompted by the fact that people are calling out celebrities for their claims around social justice matters,” she says. These videos exhibits the limits – and the hypocrisy – of celebrity understanding of class solidarity. “It’s positioned as taking responsibility,” Francesca says. “[What it shows] is how the tears of famous white women are used to try and absolve them of their responsibility.”
There has been a commodification of activism over the past few years by brands, and by celebrities as well, who are essentially brands in themselves. Much of this has amounted to shallow gestures and platitudes – something that feels at odds with the urgency of our current cultural moment. When last year, Jay Z crossed a picket line to host an Oscars after party, it inspired outrage. Instead of standing in solidarity with the workers – many of them working-class Black and brown Americans – at the Marmont, the rapper had instead chosen to throw a lavish party, and in doing so, made clear the limits of his #activism.
But these mounting criticisms aren’t because we suddenly hold celebrities to a higher moral standard than before. Rather, it’s in part because celebrities are more likely to be held accountable for their actions on social media compared to previous points in history. “As celebrities can, and often do, use social media to share their thoughts on a range of issues of injustice, people are particularly alert to what celebrities claim to stand for,” Francesca says. “So when the actions of celebrities seem to contradict prior claims that they’ve made, critique quickly ensues.” When considering the backlash that forced Drew Barrymore to reverse her decision, it’s clear that this can be a force for positive change.
If celebrity culture is to adapt to our current climate, it needs to find ways to meaningfully address social justice issues. It’ll mean more than just social media posts, but going to protests, and providing financial and material resources. They have to understand that social action requires involvement in a sustained way, in a way that decentres themselves. And considering this understanding is diametrically opposed to the cult of celebrity, that just doesn’t look likely any time soon.