Is all press good press and did Harry Styles really spit on Chris Pine?
Yes, my articles always circle back to Harry Styles. My sincerest apologies. Whether it is a lack of creativity or just pure obsession, I am afraid I cannot say. But I do hope we can collectively move past whichever it is and focus on the statement at hand: all press is good press. Exhibit A, Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling, starring Harry Styles, Florence Pugh, Gemma Chan, Chris Pine, Nick Kroll, and Olivia herself.
If you are the slightest bit up to date with pop culture and the celebrity chaos known as Hollywood, you will have stumbled upon the very important question: did Harry Styles spit on Chris Pine? I believe that this question remains unanswered, despite Harry (jokingly) addressing the incident during his first show back at MSG after returning from the Don’t Worry Darling world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The point is, however, that the question of whether or not Mr. Styles did in fact spit on Chris Pine, probably generated more media coverage than the movie itself.
As if the whole spitting debacle didn’t stir up enough internet buzz on its own, the drama on set and the whole premiere ‘situation’ at the Venice Film Festival really did their parts in contributing to the whirlwind of media coverage of Wilde’s movie. For those of you who have no idea what I’m on about, let me get you up to speed real quick. Harry and Olivia started dating (or did they?). Olivia and Florence had beef (or did they?). Florence barely promoted the movie. Rumors of extremely unfair pay started circulating. Florence didn’t attend the Don’t Worry Darling press conference in Venice due to “scheduling issues”, yet she was seen in Venice enjoying a nice cocktail. Harry’s favorite thing about the movie is that it feels like a movie… The director and her two leads did not say one word to each other on the red carpet. Harry kissed Nick. Still with me? Great, let’s get to the point.
All press is good press. Is this really true? American Political Assistant Roger Stone presents the idea that “It’s better to be infamous than not to be famous at all” (Stone’s Rules: How to win at politics, business and style, 2018). If you’d ask me, these statements aren’t all that different. Sure, maybe the concept works better in some fields than others, but at the end of the day, the point is, that in order to be seen you need to get people talking about you.
On the other hand, especially within the entertainment industry, bad talk can scare off viewers. Then again, negative publicity always comes with risks. Looking at Don’t Worry Darling, Wilde’s movie was predicted to generate $20 million in ticket sales, during opening weekend alone. With all the drama circulating during the movie’s production, these predictions started to get second guessed. Although now, after the fact, it seems as though the predictions were in fact met.
So, I think we can agree that cast drama and your two leads not even speaking with one another doesn’t look too good. I do, however, think that the amount of media coverage this movie, and everything surrounding, has received, is great publicity. Why? Well, simply put, having people talking about your movie must be better than not having people talking about
your movie. It all worked out well for Don’t Worry Darling, didn’t it? How many people go to see the movie once it’s out in theaters, really boils down to how many people are aware that it is coming to theaters. Obviously there needs to be a smidge of interest in the actual movie, but generally speaking, if more people were to see, read, or hear about Don’t Worry Darling, the more likely it is that the movie reels in a high number of viewers. And, let’s be real, at this point it would have been near impossible not to have stumbled across something Don’t Worry Darling related while scrolling on any online platform. Even my dad came home asking me if Harry Styles had spit on Chris Pine… I think that says enough.
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