Oscar campaigns are in full swing. During her exhaustive campaigning for Barbie, Margot Robbie said that after the Oscars she’s going to hide away for awhile, “I think everyone is tired of seeing my face.” Sure, the onslaught of Barbie marketing was a never-ending facet. I've definitely seen Margot Robbie’s face more times this year than I’ve seen my own mother’s, and it’s true that I’m ready for the millennial pink to die down, but I don’t hear Ryan Gosling measuring the same public temperature.
Margot choosing to say this, after the biggest year in her career, stands out because it illuminates an issue very specific to the female experience: being palatable.
When the discourse around this quote first started, I watched people make the obvious counter argument: we don’t expect men to think about taking time off, or disappearing after a year of heavy press, because they’re just doing their job. They don’t need to vanish— they’re so popular! I love looking at a photo of them at a premiere and then not thinking about them until I see another photo of them at a premiere.
But that parallel is too simple. The real reason we don’t expect men to take time off is because we don’t abuse them while they’re here.
Women are forced to take long breaks because women are put under a microscope that doesn't apply to men. When Barbie premiered I saw photos of Margot out with her husband, followed by a million articles titled “Who is Margot Robbie’s Husband?” “Inside Margot Robbie’s Marriage” “Real-Life Barbie, Margot Robbie, and Her Ken.” Last I checked most men in Hollywood had partners, wives, girlfriends etc. and yet we don’t see this kind of hunger for details.
Men aren’t expected to feed a media cycle as part of their popularity, because men don’t need to be liked to be popular. Men can show up, do their job, and leave. Jacob Elordi was in two huge movies last year and went viral several times. Each time a new clip of him circulated online it was always something from a press event, not his personal life. Taylor Swift on the other hand, goes viral for whispering privately into her friend’s ear, blowing a kiss as she walks into a stadium, or when she seemingly eats seemingly ranch.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Rodeo Break to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.