EMPIRE VS. POST-EMPIRE

Our icon Bret Easton Ellis opines for The Daily Beast: Empire vs. Post-empire meltdown of Charley Sheen.


The histrionics and core of his actions are not the drugs but how a celebrity acts in this 2.0 internet- constantly -plugged-in -24/7 talk-show/ news- reality of today.


Cliff notes to understand Ellis: Empire: The Hollywood system, PR sound bites, studio control, The Spielbergs, The Warner Bros., The New York Times.


Post-empire: The Chelsea Handlers, Politico, making a homemade video PR plea of oneself and uploading for the world to see, The Daily Beast, studio systems birthed from You Tube.




Ellis writes:

... And now Sheen has embraced the post-Empire, making his bid to explain to all of us what celebrity means in that world. Whether you like it or not is beside the point. It’s where we are, babe. We’re learning something. Rock’n roll. Deal with it.

Post-Empire isn’t just about admitting doing “illicit” things publicly and coming clean—it’s a (for now) radical attitude that says the Empire lie doesn’t exist anymore, you friggin’ Empire trolls. To Empire gatekeepers, Charlie Sheen seems dangerous and in need of help because he’s destroying (and confirming) illusions about the nature of celebrity. He’s always been a role model for a certain kind of male fantasy. Degrading, perhaps, but aren’t most male fantasies? (I don’t know any straight men who fantasize about Tom Cruise’s personal life.) Sheen has always been a bad boy, which is part of his appeal—to men and women. There’s a manly mock-dignity about Sheen that both sexes like a lot. What Sheen has exemplified and has clarified is the moment in the culture when not giving a fuck about what the public thinks about you or your personal life is what matters most—and what makes the public love you even more (if not exactly CBS or the creator of the show that has made you so wealthy). It’s a different brand of narcissism than Empire narcissism