Smart girls don't grab Robert Pattinson

June 16, 7:01 PMBooks on Film ExaminerConnie Ann Kirk

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Actor Robert Pattinson is chased by fans as he leaves the set of "Remember
Me" in New York, Monday, June 15, 2009. (AP Photo/Charles Sykes)
 

This is a follow-up to an article called "13 Reasons why smart girls love Robert Pattinson."

What were these (um, un-smart or un-thinking) fans thinking?

Yesterday at NYU, where actor/musician Robert Pattinson was filming a scene for his newest movie, Remember Me, he was approached by several overzealous female fans who not only got close enough to try to get a photo with the rising movie star but also avoided the warnings of his security aids and went so far as to accost him physically and grab him around the neck. 

One wonders--would this kind of excited behavior, however innocently intended and good-naturedly received, be tolerated if male fans went after a female starlet leaving the set of her new movie in the same way? Not likely.

The still photos were concerning, but a video that has surfaced of the incident shows the scene as even more aggressive (and prompted this article) than once thought.  Women stepped out in front of Mr. Pattinson and his security aids while they were walking down the sidewalk. They shouted his name, and reached out for him, then ran up to him and grabbed him, trying to force him to give them his attention when he was clearly not interested in stopping.

It's one thing to be a fan and enjoy an actor's work and show up at official public gatherings (press events, premieres, etc.) to celebrate that work and scream one's head off (if you must) with the excitement of the moment. It's also one thing to politely ask for a photograph or autograph if one should come across an actor in public in a non-official setting, such as in a restaurant. Even that could be seen as an imposition.

However, it's quite another thing to physically accost the man at work or when he is moving about in his private life. A look of disinterest--from an actor or a person of any occupation, for that matter--or someone walking swiftly away--is the sign of a person who is trying as politely as s/he can to move on with what s/he is currently doing. You don't have to be especially smart to get that message and respond accordingly and appropriately.

Pattinson rose to this frenzied level of fame through his role as Edward Cullen in the Twilight Saga films, Twilight and New Moon, based on the books by Stephenie Meyer. He also appeared in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, based on the popular series of books by J. K. Rowling.  Mr. Pattinson will be filming the third adaptation of the Twilight series, Eclipse,  later this year. He has appeared in several other films based on books as well and plans to do more.

However much some smart girls (women, ladies, moms) may love Robert Pattinson, they don't lose their heads (if they can help it) or behave badly when around him, and they certainly don't hunt him down and attack him, well--like a pack of wolves.

One hopes the bad publicity these women received after this impulsive incident will help them learn and grow into better people, as all of us must try to do. One or two of them may have even gone home last night and felt embarrassed that she "lost her head" for a moment.  It happens.  It's not like many other fans of the actor/musician are totally innocent--some have probably daydreamed of doing the same thing if they had the chance, but for most it stays just that--a daydream.

For Mr. Pattinson's sake, that's probably a good thing.

Comment below:

It can be humorous to see a man so admired by women that he is followed by a crowd of them wherever he goes. He can even be the envy of other men. However, do you agree or disagree that grabbing would not be tolerated if male fans got that close to a female actor? Should it be any different the other way around?

Agree? Disagree? Let us know in the Comments Section.

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