Variety magazine recently brought together Friends star Jennifer Aniston and MCU veteran, Sebastian Stan in an Actor on Actor interview. The pair then launched a discussion that transported them to the 90s and then back to the early pandemic days. Over the course of the interview, one thing became sufficiently clear — they don’t seem to favor the constant exposure that the internet has brought us.
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In these constantly shifting times, the world has left little to one’s imagination with the constant accompaniment of social media, virtual reality, and online culture. Even as technology is becoming more and more predominant and reality is on a hiatus, some people from the industry of make-believe are having a nostalgic throwback to the times when TikTok dances were not the only thing that ruled our days.
Jennifer Aniston and Sebastian Stan Talk About the Impact of Internet Fame
The pandemic has rendered our lives more stagnant than the time when the work-from-home culture had started skyrocketing. Now, everyone had to isolate and distance themselves. The impact was made worse by the constant flurry of news. Aniston believes the pandemic had taken away her earlier enthusiasm for keeping up with the world via the morning shows.
In her candid discussion, Jennifer Aniston talks about the time when a live audience performance on the set of the popular 90s sitcom, Friends was a walk in the park for her. Now, however, with people occupied with their persona behind the phones and Instagram filters, such live performances are hardly imaginable. Stan concurs that it would be terrifying for movie stars to step out of the safety net provided by movie set retakes and stand in front of a crowd while delivering lines.
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The internet had rendered a lot of things moot. From the time when shows and movies could be watched on tape to 24-hours exposure to news and global events happening and being delivered in real-time, there is no place left for mystery or imagination. In Sebastian Stan’s words:
I’m thinking if you had social media when “Friends” was happening, it’s almost like I’m sure the network would have said, “Hey, can we get a TikTok video of you guys?” And so much of that was preserved for the screen. And that’s why I sometimes wonder: Are we without some of that mystery?
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Jennifer Aniston’s Opinion on TikTok and Paris Hilton
Jennifer Aniston rose to stardom with her appearance as a series regular Rachel on Friends. Although shot in the 90s, parallel to the time when the Internet was becoming a thing of Everyman, it was still before the rise of social media culture. The Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress recalls the time before the industry was taken over by the latter:
The internet really shaped a new culture about people becoming famous. This thing of people becoming famous for basically doing nothing. I mean — Paris Hilton, Monica Lewinsky, all those.
I always say I feel lucky that we got a little taste of the industry before it became what it is today, which is just different — more streaming services, more people. You’re famous from TikTok. You’re famous from YouTube. You’re famous from Instagram. It’s sort of almost like it’s diluting our actor’s job.
Also read: 15 Times Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie Gave Us Friendship Goals
Jennifer Aniston is currently starring in the Apple TV+ drama, The Morning Show.
Sebastian Stan’s limited series biographical dark comedy Pam & Tommy is streaming on Hulu.
Source: Variety
