There are exactly zero winners in the Greta Gerwig tweetstorm
By Erin Qualey
Two women see a matinee showing of I Feel Pretty in NYC. Tweetstorm ensues.
Is there no etiquette at the movies anymore? Yesterday, filmmaker Jaye Hunt, under the Twitter handle @hayejunt, live tweeted her experience at an afternoon showing of Amy Schumer’s new film I Feel Pretty. The reason for her running commentary? Well, Oscar-nominated director Greta Gerwig – or a woman who looked very much like Greta Gerwig – was sitting a few rows in front of her. And she had a whole lot of opinions. Loud opinions.
Thus, a tweetstorm was born.
Hunt’s original thread includes all of Gerwig’s supposed reactions to the film. Spoiler alert: She did not love it. And, for me, the thread was an entertaining bit of social media, until I stopped mindlessly consuming the content and took a step back from the supposed hilarity of it all. No one looks great, and everyone involved was on their absolute worst behavior. From the Twitter stalking to the terrible movie etiquette, there are zero winners in this situation.
First off, we have to question if the woman was actually Greta Gerwig. Major entertainment publications such as Vulture and the AV Club have failed by publishing articles about the “alleged” appearance of the director at the film seemingly without even attempting to confirm if it was, in fact, her. Not a good look, friends.
Given the information we have on Gerwig, I’m fully torn on whether or not she was the one attending that showing of the film. On one hand, Gerwig has been vocal about inclusion for women in film. However, on the other hand, her loosely autobiographical character in Lady Bird would probably have no qualms about loudly declaring her hatred for a movie in public, so it’s a toss up on the legitimacy of her attendance.
Let’s assume for a moment that Gerwig was the one slurping down an extra large soda and gleefully bashing the film in that theater. If it was, why would Gerwig so ruthlessly tear down another female filmmaker in public? Sure, I Feel Pretty isn’t necessarily the greatest movie, and it doesn’t convey the best message to its audience, but Gerwig is smarter and more image savvy than this. The #MeToo movement has emphasized that prominent women in Hollywood must stick together. As one of the few recognizable female filmmakers in the industry right now, Gerwig would surely realize that openly negging a fellow lady creative in such a public space would have consequences.
The only possible explanation for such a lapse in judgement is if Gerwig was day drinking. That would totes explain the giant soda cup at least, amiright?
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Day drinking aside, loud talking and using your phone during a movie is always a no. You’d get straight up kicked out of an Alamo Drafthouse for that behavior – as well you should. Movies are hella expensive these days! And unless you’re an affluent lady who has all sorts of free time to hate-watch a trashy movie at 4pm on a weekday, that $12+ dollar ticket is the price of admission to a movie, not to a sea of blazing bright phone screens and snarky running commentary from a possibly day drunk woman.
Last but not least, let’s address the super duper creep factor of someone documenting every single move of a celebrity for entertainment value. Sorry, Jaye Hunt, but no one loves when their bad behavior is put on display for the entire world to see. Except maybe Amy Schumer. But I’ve heard she’s got a movie out right now…