“I LOVE that character, but I know that the actor is controversial.” Throughout all of media, there is an idea of separating the art from the artist. According to TheCrimson, separating the art from the artist is “… a debate that has risen to the forefront of the art world as our favorite musicians, writers, actors, and — most recently — animators have been exposed for their problematic views and actions.” This idea of separating the art from the artist creates an opportunity for IHS students to create an opinion and share their voice and beliefs about politics.
Current productions focus on ways to achieve publicity and choosing actors with a large following. This creates a bigger audience for when their films and creations are finally made. Sometimes actors with a large following have their fans for a negative reason. As consumers it is not common or considered normal to research an actor before watching a film, usually it is after and it includes us stalking all of their work, but sophomore Ethan Leith says, “I do not research before because it just does not seem needed.” If you research an actor before a show, this can help locate their controversies and beliefs and if or how they apologized. Even with all these controversies, society still gives all types of actor’s jobs, and an uneducated audience supplies the actors with support and love. Not only does this feed their fame but it can create a stronger, positive image of the celebrity. Freshman Nyssa Balagopalan shares her idea of the limit it of how far society should go to still enjoy content from controversial actors: “It depends on if it is plain wrong like racist or sexist then its extreme and I do not agree with them but if it is like something where you can see the other side, I would probably still look at them.” Not only can actors make a film controversial, but directors can also be a part of this big problem. A
director becomes controversial if they continue to hire people regardless of if they have received backlash from past tweets or events. Immediately after being asked if she knew any examples of controversial directors, senior Liliya Ustinova said, “Sam Levinson.” She explains why she replied with her speed, saying, “He recently directed ‘The Idol’, and a lot of controversy came up about his works.”
“The Idol” was cancelled shortly after production. It starred Lily Rose Depp, an up-and-coming actor and daughter of famous actor Johnny Depp, and the famous singer Abel Tesfaye, also known as The Weeknd. While these actors are very well known and liked, they received harsh criticism from doing this show with Sam Levinson. Wikipedia shares a synopsis of the show, stating, “Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp) is a pop idol who resolves to reclaim her title as the sexiest pop star in the United States after her last tour was canceled following a nervous breakdown. She begins a complex relationship with Tedros (Abel Tesfaye), a self-help guru and the head of a contemporary cult.” Not only was the show incredibly sexist and created a weak image of women but it was a very violent show. This is only one of the many examples of Levinson being a damaging director, Ustinova mentions another way he is controversial. During the time of filming the teenage drama, ‘Euphoria’, many people mentioned his mistreatment to the actors dealing with addiction on and off the set. This is not just a moral problem; it is a safety issue.
An example of a very well-known and equally controversial rapper is Kanye West. Junior Asher Walker shares one of the main reasons people choose to not support him, stating, “He has not apologized.” Woof Magazine shares a story about Kanye West and how he represents separating art from the artist. It shares, “For the past year, however, the rapper and designer
has spurred numerous controversies due to his increasingly troubling behavior. In October, it appeared as though the internet had enough when West wore a ‘White Lives Matter’ shirt at Paris Fashion week and then made a number of antisemitic remarks, later doubling down on the rhetoric and aligning himself with white supremacists.” While he is controversial many people, including IHS students still listen to his music and have him on their playlist. According to a statistic by Spotify, Kanye West has over 64 million listeners per month. Even freshman Balagopalan who shares how she does not support Kanye had him in her Spotify wrapped.
Not only does separating the art from the artist create these conversations but it also promotes the idea of being able to talk about people’s faults and how to apologize. Apologizing is important because it creates a way for society to redefine their morals and figure out to what extent they will accept apologies over actions.
