If you’ve been listening to the U.K. news recently, you might have heard about something called the “Harvey Weinstein effect.”
The allegations of sexual assault and harassment against the movie mogul have led to a mass exodus of high-profile men in show business, including many top film producers, directors, and actors. One of the first prominent figures to be publicly accused of sexual misconduct was former BBC journalist and Weinstein biographer, Liz MacLeman. When she tweeted about her conversation with the disgraced Hollywood figure, dozens of famous women, including Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, and Ashley Judd, followed suit.
While the effect in Hollywood has been devastating, it has also exposed the hypocrisy and lack of accountability in the realm of entertainment. Just last week, The Guardian published an expose on the questionable ethical practices at the heart of the Hollywood power structure, which served to shine a light on the influence and reach of Harvey Weinstein in Britain. One of the people they profiled was the English actor and filmmaker, Robert Pattinson.
Based on the unprecedented reporting by The Guardian and the New York Times, along with scores of others, it’s fair to say that Harvey Weinstein has had a major impact on the UK landscape. But it’s also fair to say that his reach doesn’t extend to the entirety of British culture, and it’s time for the country’s top creatives, both within and outside of the entertainment industry, to stand up and be counted. One name that stands out among those who have spoken up is that of Robert Pattinson.
The ‘Twilight’ Effect
Let’s take a trip back in time to 2008. It was a very memorable year for Hollywood, as the then-unknown Twilight actor swept the nation clean of vampire stereotypes, won over a generation of fans, and fundamentally changed the way people viewed his co-star, Kristen Stewart. From a cinematic anomaly to a cultural phenomenon, and still going strong after six movies, Twilight was and still is, in a class of its own. And it’s not just the movies. With a global box office haul of over $11 billion, Twilight also scored as the second highest grossing book-to-movie adaptation of all time, just behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. It helped that Stewart and Pattinson were consistently adorable and relatable, even when dressed in monster suits.
This year, Pattinson will appear in four separate films, as part of a rare five-film deal that will keep him busy for the rest of the year. Between January and April, he will star in the fantasy film, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets; the dystopian thriller, The Rover; the romantic comedy, Dangerous Method; and the comic book adaptation, The Batman.
A Modern-Day King
If there’s one thing that Harvey Weinstein has shown us, it’s that the entertainment industry is a ruthless place, driven only by greed and power, and lacking any real moral compass. As The Guardian puts it: “If movies are a window on society, then the film industry is the mirror that reflects our times.” And what better example of this duplicitous nature than the 2016 movie, The King, in which Harvey Weinstein co-produced and served as an executive producer.
Based on Stephen King’s best-selling novel, The Stand, the story focuses on a violent plague that ravages the world, forcing those who survive to engage with each other under the guidance of a tyrannical leader, Randall Flagg (played by a terrifyingly believable Mike Flanagan). King’s magnum opus, The Shining, is also among the films that influenced The Stand. Like The Shining and other stories featured in King’s books, The Stand is rich in atmosphere and dread-inducing tension. Everything about the film feels dark and disturbing, from its jump scares to its bloody battles to its twisted, morally ambiguous characters. What’s more is that many of the supporting characters have ambiguous motivations, making it even more intriguing, and also disturbing.
Flagg is a brutal villain who holds both Teddy (Jamie Dornan) and Ruth (Greta Gerwig) captive. While he forces them to perform brutal, back-breaking labor, he also tries to convince them that he’s their savior. After explaining that humanity is cursed and that only he can prevent the annihilation of both humankind and supernatural creatures alike, he tasks the two women with choosing a new human to serve as a vessel for the Antichrist. His diabolical plan is to have Ruth and Teddy impregnate this individual, thus ensuring humanity’s continued survival. For a film that’s been getting largely positive reviews, it’s surprising just how shocking The Stand can be. And it’s not just the horror elements that will have audiences gasping in anticipation or crying out in fright. It’s also the film’s brutal treatment of women, which will make even the most diehard feminist cringe. All in all, it’s certainly not your typical Hollywood movie, and that’s precisely why audiences should see it.
A Powerhouse Performance
Last year, Robert Pattinson made history, becoming one of only a handful of actors to have a film premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, and then go on to have a box office hit. The year before, his role in the dystopian thriller, The Rover, saw him earn a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the British Independent Film Awards. In 2015, he starred in the critically acclaimed Danish film, The Lost Honor of Anna Dahl, alongside a then-unknown Kristen Stewart. Based on the true story of World War II heroine, Anna, and her quest to clear her name after being accused of treason, the film has garnered widespread critical acclaim, with many praising Pattinson’s powerful performance.
While Stewart and Pattinson’s on-screen chemistry is undeniable, it’s important to remember that their on-set rapport is also the product of an intense effort, with the pair working tirelessly to develop their characters’ unique bond, before and after filming. Over the course of the two-and-a-half-year production, they managed to carve out a space for themselves in the hearts of viewers around the world, and solidified their status as one of Hollywood’s most recognizable and dependable on-screen couples.
Whether it’s the success of their individual films or the phenomenal box office haul of their collective work, Stewart and Pattinson seem to have found a niche, and are clearly comfortable in their roles, which, for a couple, can only be described as comfortable chaos.
The Acclaimed Duo
Forbes has ranked the top 50 celebrities for 2019 based on their social media influence, and among this group, Robert Pattinson is ranked number one. The publication states: “He [Pattinson] dominates the celebrity world with a following of 171 million on TikTok. He has more than 400 million followers across all platforms, ahead of Jennifer Lopez, who has 314 million across platforms, and George Clooney, whose Twitter follows of 269 million and Instagram of 240 million put him in the top three.” And this is just one of the many platforms on which he harnesses his immense popularity. In 2019 alone, he has over 20.7 million followers on TikTok, over 17.4 million on YouTube, and over 14.9 million on Instagram. Clearly, with this kind of reach, it’s no wonder that people are interested in what he has to say. After all, he has something interesting to say about everything, as his prolific Twitter reveals. In 2019 alone, he has tweeted about everything from fashion to film to music to books to cryptocurrency to Game of Thrones to Brexit to the Royal Family. You name it, he’s tweeted about it. This is someone who truly has something to say, and he says it all across platforms. It’ll be interesting to see what 2020 has in store for Robert Pattinson, not just as an individual, but as a member of the #Twilight generation, which is still going strong after eight years since the premiere of its first installment.