Post by canadia on Jul 5, 2010 10:37:37 GMT -5
Are they or aren't they?
SHELLY HORTON
July 5, 2010 - 3:35PM
he engineered fauxmance has helped to sell movies for 50 years and audiences still get sucked in, writes Shelly Horton.
From the moment in 1959 when Doris Day was paired with Rock Hudson, Hollywood spin doctors discovered the power of the fake romance.
It didn't matter one bit that gay Hudson was using Day as a beard; the publicists of their movie Pillow Talk quickly saw how much movie-goers wanted to believe the couple were in love offscreen as well as on.
he more the pair appeared together at openings, parties or anywhere else a camera was likely to be, the more fans were convinced they were really in love ... and it worked.
Pillow Talk was a huge success; two more movies followed, with Hudson playing Day's romantic interest in Lover Come Back and Send Me No Flowers.
And the fauxmance was born.
"Hollywood fauxmances work because the public wants to see beautiful, famous people together. With all the tabloids and overexposure of celebs these days, having two huge A-listers paired together sells magazines and movies," says Bridget Daly from US celebrity website hollyscoop.com.
Sydney celebrity manager Mark Byrne agrees: "The power of two celebrities is the most powerful force in media and has been for many years - it is a manager's wet dream."
Fast-forward to 2010 and little has changed. Twilight stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, anyone? Now, before you Twi-hards write in, it doesn't have to be a gay cover-up these days but the fauxmance does have to help sell a film. They're in love, they're not. They're engaged, she's dumped him for co-star Taylor Lautner. There are even websites devoted to the "Are they? Aren't they?" debate.
After refusing to confirm or deny they were an actual couple, RPattz and KStew have suddenly started kissing and hugging in real life - just as the third movie in the Twilight series is about to go global.
In April, Pattinson stoked the fires by declaring Stewart was just a friend. "I really like to work with her. She's more mature than her age, a real professional, I couldn't wish for a better partner, because she makes my every move, every sentence authentic."
Rumours he had asked her to marry him, he added, were "total bullshit".
Then, a moment later, he called her "his perfect partner". And the speculation goes on.
"We know for a fact that these two are at least hooking up," Daly says.
"Several witnesses have told hollyscoop.com that Rob and Kristen were kissing, hugging and flirting heavily at the after party for the Eclipse premiere at the Thompson Hotel rooftop last week in LA. We've caught them one too many times in the past as well. But they're smart by never admitting to it, yet alluding to their romance. It keeps everyone on their toes - especially the Twi-hards."
Flashbulb-friendly couplings date all the way back to Bogey and Bacall. It's almost a staple of the pre-release publicity for any new film for "rumours" to surface linking the co-stars. Then set up a pap shot and listen for the ka-ching at the box office.
"The right set-up photo can be a ticket to super-celebritism and the right set-up is guaranteed global coverage," Byrne says.
Publicity maven Prue MacSween of Verve Communications agrees: "The photo op is everything. It sways opinion and the PR directs marketing campaigns and often determines the success of an event or movie."
Remember, Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth were snapped kissing goodbye at the airport yet denied their romance on the set of The Last Song, then announced it was on before the premiere.
And while some are no doubt genuine - it's hard to fake love long enough to adopt kids, for example - some are pure fiction, engineered to sell tickets.
"The most suspect Hollywood romances right now are: Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper and Renee Zellweger, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, and David and Victoria Beckham (cheating scandals follow him like the plague). And possible ones: Jay-Z and Beyonce, Khloe Kardashian and Laker star Lamar Odom," Daly says.
Sometimes, such as with Hudson and Day, the fauxmance is designed to cover up the fact a leading man is more interested in other leading men.
"There are definitely a few leading men in question when it comes to their sexuality. Coming out in Hollywood is still a really big deal. Some stars are successful, like Neil Patrick Harris and Ellen DeGeneres. But you'll also notice there are zero leading Hollywood players who are huge box-office leaders," Daly says.
Apart from the gay question, other times it's just a relationship of convenience, formed when two beautiful people are trapped in a remote location for months on end. And more often than not, it's a marketing exercise.
"Fake relationships with frequent photo opportunities for the paparazzi are a key aspect of any new intellectual property aimed at young people in the current media environment," said Chad Keighley, vice-president in charge of talent relations for America's CW network when pictures started to emerge of Gossip Girl stars Blake Lively and Penn Badgley holidaying in Mexico and holding hands in New York in May 2008. It was widely known at the network the "romance" had been engineered to coincide with the series relaunch and would peak during ratings weeks in the US.
The network not only admitted it but said they had more planned.
"The CW is proud to bring Blake and Penn together for our devoted fans, with another fake relationship on tap for later in the season. We'll also be producing some episodes and see how those go." Got to love that honesty.
It's so common, Jennifer Aniston admitted earlier this year, that when you really do fall for your leading man, nobody believes it.
The actor came out with guns blazing after it was suggested her relationship with The Bounty Hunter co-star Gerard Butler was just another cynical grab for magazine covers.
"They [fans] think that if you do a movie together and you get on really well, you must be dating," she told a British website.
"You know there's all this stuff about calculating ... that me and Gerry are in this fake relationship for the press of our movie or the selling of it. It's just so insulting."
But insulting as it may be, the publicity machine has realised there's an upside to the controversies - debating how much is real sells even more magazines than any romance.
www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/are-they-or-arent-they-20100705-zwfo.html
SHELLY HORTON
July 5, 2010 - 3:35PM
he engineered fauxmance has helped to sell movies for 50 years and audiences still get sucked in, writes Shelly Horton.
From the moment in 1959 when Doris Day was paired with Rock Hudson, Hollywood spin doctors discovered the power of the fake romance.
It didn't matter one bit that gay Hudson was using Day as a beard; the publicists of their movie Pillow Talk quickly saw how much movie-goers wanted to believe the couple were in love offscreen as well as on.
he more the pair appeared together at openings, parties or anywhere else a camera was likely to be, the more fans were convinced they were really in love ... and it worked.
Pillow Talk was a huge success; two more movies followed, with Hudson playing Day's romantic interest in Lover Come Back and Send Me No Flowers.
And the fauxmance was born.
"Hollywood fauxmances work because the public wants to see beautiful, famous people together. With all the tabloids and overexposure of celebs these days, having two huge A-listers paired together sells magazines and movies," says Bridget Daly from US celebrity website hollyscoop.com.
Sydney celebrity manager Mark Byrne agrees: "The power of two celebrities is the most powerful force in media and has been for many years - it is a manager's wet dream."
Fast-forward to 2010 and little has changed. Twilight stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, anyone? Now, before you Twi-hards write in, it doesn't have to be a gay cover-up these days but the fauxmance does have to help sell a film. They're in love, they're not. They're engaged, she's dumped him for co-star Taylor Lautner. There are even websites devoted to the "Are they? Aren't they?" debate.
After refusing to confirm or deny they were an actual couple, RPattz and KStew have suddenly started kissing and hugging in real life - just as the third movie in the Twilight series is about to go global.
In April, Pattinson stoked the fires by declaring Stewart was just a friend. "I really like to work with her. She's more mature than her age, a real professional, I couldn't wish for a better partner, because she makes my every move, every sentence authentic."
Rumours he had asked her to marry him, he added, were "total bullshit".
Then, a moment later, he called her "his perfect partner". And the speculation goes on.
"We know for a fact that these two are at least hooking up," Daly says.
"Several witnesses have told hollyscoop.com that Rob and Kristen were kissing, hugging and flirting heavily at the after party for the Eclipse premiere at the Thompson Hotel rooftop last week in LA. We've caught them one too many times in the past as well. But they're smart by never admitting to it, yet alluding to their romance. It keeps everyone on their toes - especially the Twi-hards."
Flashbulb-friendly couplings date all the way back to Bogey and Bacall. It's almost a staple of the pre-release publicity for any new film for "rumours" to surface linking the co-stars. Then set up a pap shot and listen for the ka-ching at the box office.
"The right set-up photo can be a ticket to super-celebritism and the right set-up is guaranteed global coverage," Byrne says.
Publicity maven Prue MacSween of Verve Communications agrees: "The photo op is everything. It sways opinion and the PR directs marketing campaigns and often determines the success of an event or movie."
Remember, Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth were snapped kissing goodbye at the airport yet denied their romance on the set of The Last Song, then announced it was on before the premiere.
And while some are no doubt genuine - it's hard to fake love long enough to adopt kids, for example - some are pure fiction, engineered to sell tickets.
"The most suspect Hollywood romances right now are: Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper and Renee Zellweger, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, and David and Victoria Beckham (cheating scandals follow him like the plague). And possible ones: Jay-Z and Beyonce, Khloe Kardashian and Laker star Lamar Odom," Daly says.
Sometimes, such as with Hudson and Day, the fauxmance is designed to cover up the fact a leading man is more interested in other leading men.
"There are definitely a few leading men in question when it comes to their sexuality. Coming out in Hollywood is still a really big deal. Some stars are successful, like Neil Patrick Harris and Ellen DeGeneres. But you'll also notice there are zero leading Hollywood players who are huge box-office leaders," Daly says.
Apart from the gay question, other times it's just a relationship of convenience, formed when two beautiful people are trapped in a remote location for months on end. And more often than not, it's a marketing exercise.
"Fake relationships with frequent photo opportunities for the paparazzi are a key aspect of any new intellectual property aimed at young people in the current media environment," said Chad Keighley, vice-president in charge of talent relations for America's CW network when pictures started to emerge of Gossip Girl stars Blake Lively and Penn Badgley holidaying in Mexico and holding hands in New York in May 2008. It was widely known at the network the "romance" had been engineered to coincide with the series relaunch and would peak during ratings weeks in the US.
The network not only admitted it but said they had more planned.
"The CW is proud to bring Blake and Penn together for our devoted fans, with another fake relationship on tap for later in the season. We'll also be producing some episodes and see how those go." Got to love that honesty.
It's so common, Jennifer Aniston admitted earlier this year, that when you really do fall for your leading man, nobody believes it.
The actor came out with guns blazing after it was suggested her relationship with The Bounty Hunter co-star Gerard Butler was just another cynical grab for magazine covers.
"They [fans] think that if you do a movie together and you get on really well, you must be dating," she told a British website.
"You know there's all this stuff about calculating ... that me and Gerry are in this fake relationship for the press of our movie or the selling of it. It's just so insulting."
But insulting as it may be, the publicity machine has realised there's an upside to the controversies - debating how much is real sells even more magazines than any romance.
www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/are-they-or-arent-they-20100705-zwfo.html
