The Red Carpet Enigma or: Squee, He Ignored Me For 40 Seconds
Triggered by
catsplay 's posting of a video taken by fans at the ST premiere, the thought hit me instantly: is meeting your favourite celebrity and being ignored by him for all the little time you got there really worth the trip to Leicester Square?
Yeah, I know, the situation at the red carpet is mad - but still: politeness requires that you at least look at those who address you - which Rickman did not. And it simply is not true that being ushered on by those who want you to talk to the press would not give you the chance to make any contact to the fans.
As I already posted at catsplay's, I have had a totally different experience at the red carpet with other celebrities. I am aware that the situation at such events as premieres can be nasty.
I stood at the red carpet at Leicester Square jammed against the fence (The Village) and there were actually people attending only to insult the stars. Not everyone screaming there shouts friendly things. The police had to intervene in the end.
So, I can understand if stars are rather shy or careful in this madhouse atmosphere.
Still, I remember Shyamalan, who was the star of the evening, arriving at the Carpet and actually interacting with the fans gracefully. He spent the longest time walking up and down the line of fans, taking his time, even though he was ushered on by people who knew the film would start soon. He looked (yes, he looked) at everyone he gave an autograph to. He even allowed people to take a picture with him (which meant that he had to lean over the fence). He even talked to me and answered a few questions while he signed my magazine. So, it is possible to do more than half-heartedly signing autographs with a look of disgust (or at best boredom) on your face. Of course, Shyamalan surely is exceptional here. Many other celebrities just walked by and totally ignored the desperate screams of their fans.
It seems, everyone deals differently with this assumedly highly uncomfortable situation. I can only say: if I had stood in the rain at Leicester Square for hours, and Rickman would not even have had the courtesy to raise his eyes and look at me, I would have been highly disappointed. I am a human being after all, not a dangerous stalker. Honestly :)
Well, at least now I have an excuse for feeling no urge to travel to any red carpet event involving AR.