If you’re a celebrity, you very quickly learn that there are handlers and publicists for a reason. They are there to make sure you don’t make a fool of yourself, or let others do it for you.
And then there is Jennifer Lawrence.
It would be easy to think or say that Lawrence is just another celebrity who is handled and moulded into specific patterns of speech and behaviour to endear her to the masses that love her.
A lot of people fell in love with the Oscar-winning actress when she fell at the very same award ceremony where she won. But more of us did when she went on to make fun of herself afterwards. On a serious note, Lawrence also believes in holding both the media (and people in general) to account for fostering a culture where women are gauged by their dress size, rather than their intelligence or talent. Sure these could easily be summed up as smart, practical and easily endearable actions to make Lawrence not only popular, but respected. Just more machinations of celebrity culture.
But not if you pay close attention. If you watch the video where Lawrence made a point of consoling a fan at the opening screening of the latest installment of The Hunger Games, you don’t see handlers moving her towards (or away) from the fan. And then there was the “meltdown” on the red carpet she had, where she jokingly made fun of both the paparazzi and the culture around it. Lawrence is smart, and even though she will play the fame game, she’s going to take the piss out of it while she does it.
When you’re a celebrity, you play the fame game because you’re selling a brand, and that brand is you. That brand is what brings in the money, the gigs, the talk shows. And this is where Lawrence shines.
Ah yes, the talk shows. Where you sit down and make inane conversation and plug your most recent project, and the host obliges you (at least while you’re sitting there) in this game of “let me tell you why you should see my movie/watch my show/listen to my album/et cetera” ad nauseum. Lawrence is becoming a master of telling embarassing stories about herself. Like the time the she peed the bed as a teen and thought it would be a great idea to share this info with her classmates. Or about shitting her pants. But arguably the best story she has told has been this one, about butt plugs.
And this is why Jennifer Lawrence is a breath of fresh air. Because she talks about butt plugs on Conan.
God bless you, Jennifer.
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