Social Media and Behind the Scenes: AKA Everything Else Not "News and Media"

[JJ928]

Does it seem to anyone that he does this when a "certain" individual from the cast is being talked about for her poor portrayal on the show?

 

To me it seems that way.

 

I would agree but a few weeks ago Stephen tweeted this: http://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/shot-through-the-heart-what-arrow-gets-right-about-comics-on-tv/

 

Granted, he has deleted it along with the rest of his most recent tweets. But this article was not kind to season 1, it praised season 2 but part of the praise was because it pushed Laurel to the background.  I remember thinking it was kinda messed up that he shared that article since it was somewhat unkind to his co-worker & the show as a whole. So I don't think his anger with twitter is just over one character, I think it's a culmination of things but I guess we'll never really know. Hey, at least the guy keeps us entertained. lol

[ban1o]

So completely unrelated to Arrow but I thought it was pretty funny... Colton and Emily in Halloween costumes 

 

Edited October 26, 2014 by ban1o

[Velocity23]

Emily is really really pretty.

 

 

 

[Velocity23]

 

I feel Emily & Colton always do great for Halloweeen. Pic from last year.

[Morrigan2575]

Emily & Colton for Halloween 2014

http://instagram.com/p/umqUxFDTOc

Love that Colton goes all out for Halloween, it's such a fun holiday.

Can only get the link, if someone can get the picture to show up, I would appreciate it

Edited October 26, 2014 by Morrigan2575

[SmallScreenDiva]

Morrigan2575, that photo is showing upthread. ban1o's post :)

[TanyaKay]

Colton has a thing for cross dressing on Halloween, nice.

[BkWurm1]

He makes a surprisingly pretty girl.  Show a little too much cleavage for my tastes though, ;)

 

(Just kidding, though for about thirty seconds I did actually think he was the one dressed up as the space case)

Edited October 26, 2014 by BkWurm1

[olicityfan25]

She is gorgeous. Plus she has the best hair!

[catrox14]

I swear if Oliver saw Felicity looking like EBR above with the whole smoky eyes thing, he'd be RUNNING to Central City. :)

 

She is so beautiful

[wingster55]

I don't know if it's all CW shows but I've seen him live tweet Arrow and Supernatural.

 

It's any sci-fi show but most of them exist on the CW nowadays. 

 

Holy damn Emily

 

Also I have no issue with Stephen's public decry of twitter. 

[JayKay]

John Barrowman's scheduled to be on Talking Dead next week.

[JenMcSnark]

Love how EBR is dressed up as a sexy astronaut since she said she wanted to be one before she got glasses.  I like the one of Colton with the make up on.  "I woke up this way"  haha

[catrox14]

John Barrowman's scheduled to be on Talking Dead next week.

 

This is so incredibly amusing to me. He is such a dork and hilarious. This should be great!

[A Cunning Stunt]

A few more Halloween pics of Emily - you can see her costume head to toe: http://www.laineygossip.com/Intro-for-October-27--2014/31660

[statsgirl]

 

Like this woman, attached below, an actress I’ve never heard of called Emily Rickard, at least according to the paps, who went to Matthew Morrison’s party dressed up like an astronaut

Considering she does gossip for CTV, the Canadian station that airs Arrow, that's a trifle crass, shall we say?  (It's your job to report gossip on people, find out who they are instead of saying you've never heard of them.)

 

It makes me glad I'm not an actress and don't have to be nice to people like her.

[olicityfan25]

Pay no attention to laineygossip. She loves to lick Kristen Stewart's ass who is a horrible actress. She doesn't know anything and is quite known in the entertainment business as someone to stay away from.

[statsgirl]

Thanks olicityfan25.  That makes me feel better.

 

I see her on TV sometimes. Now I'll know not to listen.

[wonderwall]

nevermind, lol

Edited October 28, 2014 by wonderwall

[A Cunning Stunt]

Considering she does gossip for CTV, the Canadian station that airs Arrow, that's a trifle crass, shall we say?  (It's your job to report gossip on people, find out who they are instead of saying you've never heard of them.)

 

It makes me glad I'm not an actress and don't have to be nice to people like her.

I wouldn't bother with reading what she says which is why I didn't quote the article.

 

That said, the blog is her own not her job per se & it seems to cover better known movies stars/celebs. Hell, plenty of media people have no clue who Stephen is & he's in every episode, so I don't see anything particularly wrong with what is written in this instance.

 

As much as I do love Emily I wouldn't say she's that recognizable (not that there's anything wrong with that) in the way Rachel McAdams might be? As for TV wouldn't Tatiana Mislany be a better known actress right now? I've no idea who's considered a household name in Canada.

[blixie]

 

I've no idea who's considered a household name in Canada.

 

Everybody that is Canadian. I'm kidding, kind of, but Canadian Con(tent) is actually a law there so Canadian media inlcuding Lainey love to talk up Canadian actors/musicians who are going...anywhere, and doing anything, so not knowing Emily Bett Rickards is a rising CANANDIAN star on a relative buzzy property, and she shoots in the Van City where Lainey was based is pretty lame. Lainey is an asshole, and she pretends she's too good for CW level stars, but she talks up Nina Dobrev on the regular so I'm guessing she might have heard it form Emily's fans that she's a good Canandian girl and WTF Lainey?

[A Cunning Stunt]

Heh, thanks :). That makes things a lot clearer.

 

From a purely gossip standpoint I'd guess that Emily isn't advertising her personal life as media fodder, so not much for those type of pages to report on. That I am very much glad for!

[Velocity23]

Just Jared managed to get it right.

[statsgirl]

 she talks up Nina Dobrev on the regular so I'm guessing she might have heard it form Emily's fans that she's a good Canandian girl and WTF Lainey?

And since Nina Dobrev was on the CW international tour with CH and EBR, it seems strange Lainey never heard of her.

 

From the Access Hollywood interview:

 

 

Isn't Felicity always overdressed? She has some fabulous clothes on the show.

Emily: Oh yes, I'm aware. My feet hurt most of the time because of the heels, but I'm working on that. She looks great. Honestly, like the clothes that I get to put on and try on, I mean, right now, I'm in all black and I'm on a beach and this is just so not Felicity. She would never wear this and I don't own anything as nice as she owns. I don't know when she goes shopping. She clearly spends all of her money on clothes. We definitely have that in common, but we definitely shop for different things.

It always makes me laugh when actresses take off their very fashionable shoes when the camera is not on their feet because the shoes are just so darn uncomfortable.

 

Some day, we will evolve to the point where women can were comfortable shoes like men do, and not be considered unsexy, I hope.  And when Christian Loubouton says that he doesn't care how uncomfortable his shoes are because they look good (as he did interviewed last spring), he will be pelted with flip flops.

[foreverevolving]

 

Some day, we will evolve to the point where women can were comfortable shoes like men do, and not be considered unsexy, I hope.  And when Christian Loubouton says that he doesn't care how uncomfortable his shoes are because they look good (as he did interviewed last spring), he will be pelted with flip flops.

 

We can still wear heels and be comfy- we'll to get rid of stilettos for that. I have several high heels shoes i wear on a regular basis, and they are super comfy to wear even on long days when i'm on my feet for a good while. actually i wore them today and i did quite a bit of walking- love me my "lucky brand" boots <3 best purchase i ever made.

Edited October 28, 2014 by foreverevolving

[Starfish35]

Rumor has it that the heels that Kate Middleton is fond of wearing (I think they're LK Bennett) are extremely comfortable. But I remember reading at interview with Sarah Shahi when she was doing Fairly Legal, and how they always wanted her wearing these Louboutin stilettos. I think they finally had to compromise, because they were killing her feet.

Edited October 28, 2014 by Starfish35

[bethy]

I wish I could find the clip from the X-Files in Hollywood A.D. where Scully is showing Tea Leoni how to run in heels.  The foreground is Mulder and Garry Shandling (I think) having a conversation, and out of focus in the background is Scully running back and forth while Tea Leoni watches. It's hilarious, and I always think of that scene when I see an actress doing all these athletic things (hello, Jennifer Garner in Alias) in ridiculous shoes.

 

Also:

 

Edited October 28, 2014 by bethy

[NumberCruncher]

I wish I could find the clip from the X-Files in Hollywood A.D. where Scully is showing Tea Leoni how to run in heels.  The foreground is Mulder and Garry Shandling (I think) having a conversation, and out of focus in the background is Scully running back and forth while Tea Leoni watches. It's hilarious and I always think of that scene when actress are doing all these athletic things (hello, Jennifer Garner in Alias) in ridiculous shoes.

 

HA! I didn't particularly love that episode but that scene was CLASSIC. Thanks for the laugh.

[Velocity23]

I really do love EBR!

https://twitter.com/EmilyBett/status/527238266937151488

[Kordi]

On his FB page, Stephen Amell complains about this article:

http://www.zap2it.com/blogs/stephen_amell_facebook_justin_timberlake_nsync_twitter_social_media-2014-10

 

He says: "This article isn't accurate. I personally haven't encountered anything negative on Twitter. People I know have. And I think Twitter does a horrendous job of protecting those folks. When they have a better policy, maybe I'll go back. The part where I compared social media platforms to N'Sync? That was accurate."

 

But I don't understand why he thinks the article is inaccurate. It didn't claim at all that he himself had been the object of any hate. Furthermore, the article quotes him correctly. If you want to listen to Stephen's own words, you find a video of the relevant part of the interview here: 

 

http://www.accesshollywood.com/stephen-amell-on-his-facebook-community-talks-olivers-arrow-season-3-struggles_article_99814

 

So, my suspicion is that Amell got tons of bad critics for his twitter comments, and that he is now trying to backpedal in order to limit the damage. What do you think?

[Ceylon5]

That article quoted him word for word.  Can't get much more accurate than that!

 

Also, why does he think it's Twitter's job to prevent people from making negative comments about characters on TV shows?  That sounds like censorship to me.  Also, regarding his comment about anonymity - as Oscar Wilde said "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person.  But give him a mask and he will tell you the truth."  From an actor's point of view, I can understand why he'd rather only hear positive feed-back, but from a business POV (for the networks and show-runners), it's a lot more useful for them to get truthful feedback of how people are really feeling about a show.  Polite people will say "good job" and stop watching.  Truthful people will tell you what they really think and it can help you produce a better product that people will continue to want to watch.  IMO.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Ceylon5

[Password]

Is he talking about his wife perhaps?

[Ceylon5]

Is he talking about his wife perhaps?

 

Well, he specifically says

Twitter feels like a fad to me and I've been really disappointed by the level of... just the level of vitriol and I don't know if that's a by-product of the anonymity there, but when you're sort of scrolling through, looking at Twitter reactions to the show, they exist at the edge of each spectrum.  They're either…they're incredibly negative towards some characters, they're overwhelmingly positive towards others.

 

So, while I'm sure that direct attacks on the people themselves is contributing to how he feels (and that's fair enough), what he was talking about in this interview were the reactions to the show and its characters.  Silly thing to get bent out of shape about, IMO.  Loving or hating characters is a major part of watching TV; thinking people are only going to express their positive reactions and not their negative ones is unrealistic.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Ceylon5

[Kordi]

That article quoted him word for word.  Can't get much more accurate than that!

 

Also, why does he think it's Twitter's job to prevent people from making negative comments about characters on TV shows?  That sounds like censorship to me.  Also, regarding his comment about anonymity - as Oscar Wilde said "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person.  But give him a mask and he will tell you the truth."  From an actor's point of view, I can understand why he'd rather only hear positive feed-back, but from a business POV (for the networks and show-runners), it's a lot more useful for them to get truthful feedback of how people are really feeling about a show.  Polite people will say "good job" and stop watching.  Truthful people will tell you what they really think and it can help you produce a better product that people will continue to want to watch.  IMO.

My guess is SA sees social media in general, and his FB page in particular, as a space for a kind of "decorative display" or even "trophy exhibit" where (i) he can present himself as a celebrity who cares very much about his fans (and in fact, he IS exceptional in this regard!) and (ii) he can show via memes, fan art etc. how much his fans love him... (and they REALLY do!). You can't do this in the same way on Twitter. All you have there to brag about is the number of your followers, and in the case of SA, this number isn't small (about 500k, I think), but it isn't surprisingly big, either. So I suppose, Twitter just doesn't suit his purposes.

[Ceylon5]

I would be interested to see how this would all change if they actually got their act together and wrote Laurel off the show.  The vast majority of the negativity towards the show orbits around that character (mostly directed against her, but also partly her supporters reacting and lashing out against other characters as a way to defend her).  If she just wasn't there anymore, I think the conversation surrounding this show would be fundamentally changed and considerably more pleasant.  I'm sure there would still be plenty to criticise, but I think a lot of the vitriol would disappear.  Laurel just brings out the worst in everyone, on the show and off.

 

I wonder if Stephen secretly wishes that they would just do this, too, for everyone's sake?

[apinknightmare]

Is he talking about his wife perhaps?

 

If he is, I don't get why he wouldn't just say that. It would be understandable, instead of specifically mentioning that he doesn't really care for Twitter reactions to the show. That makes it seem like he's just picking up his toys and going home because he doesn't like what he sees. 

[Carrie Ann]

I just remembered that Stephen was invited to the Facebook offices sometime last year. I swear he said he would talk about why at some point, but I don't remember any outcome of that? At any rate, I would bet they sort of schmoozed him and that in combination with it just working better for him has made him a Facebook cheerleader. It's sort of...out of touch, because Facebook is definitely the dinosaur of social media right now.

 

Like I said before, I really think it's easier to say that people should just "ignore it" than it is to actually do it, and I don't blame any public figure for retreating from any form of social media. SA is probably taking it a step too far by trying to blame Twitter itself for it, rather than just saying, "Eh, it's not really for me because I dislike some aspects of it."

Edited October 29, 2014 by Carrie Ann

[Morrigan2575]

He was invited to the Facebook headquarters to do a Q&A.

[Carrie Ann]

A Q&A with their staff?

[Guest]

I don't understand why SA had to even say anything about Twitter in the first place. He made it a big deal by drawing attention to it. Just stop posting on Twitter and continue on Facebook and do your own thing, you know? He made drama where there really is none tbh. I love him but come on. 

[Danny Franks]

It's typical of the usual timeline of a TV show, if you ask me. The people involved love social media to begin with, they love the praise and feedback they get from fans high on this new show. Everything is great, and the fan interaction is wonderful, because it comes in the form of constant affirmation and adulation.

Then they start writing stuff that fans don't like, and those fans let them know it. Then they react badly and/or continue to write stuff the fans don't like, so the vitriol gets worse and worse, and those people who were previously effusive in their love of social media start to talk about how unpleasant it is.

You like the praise? I'm sorry, but you need to suck it up and accept the criticism as well. Or stop using socia media altogether.

[Morrigan2575]

A Q&A with their staff?

No it was a Q&A with his fans but he did it from Facebook headquarters and it was a live event (IIRC) 

[Carrie Ann]

OK, so it was still a buttering-up by Facebook. No reason for it to be held there, except to schmooze him, right?

[Sunshine]

Zap2it updated their article.  SA thanked them and said basically it's now correct.  He has never been a fan of Twitter and has always preferred FB even before being invited to their offices.  Even during live tweets he rarely tweets and he goes through long periods without tweeting at all.

[Morrigan2575]

You mean it wasn't correct when they directly quoted him?  Come on, SA.  

Edited October 29, 2014 by Morrigan2575

[fantique]

OK, so it was still a buttering-up by Facebook. No reason for it to be held there, except to schmooze him, right?

The hunger games cast for Mockinjay did the same things. They had Q&As at FaceBook and Google. It's pretty common practice these days.

 

I just don't understand why this is such a big deal. He doesn't like Twitter as much. He has given his reasons (genuine or not) why. I don't know why it's still a topic of discussion. I feel like if I were in his position I would also prefer FB (and I hate FB so this is not me pushing them in any way). Like seriously everytime someone posts a tweet here in the forum, I click the link to Twitter, see a bunch of positive responses and then it quickly devolves into some people being offensive or offering up unwanted opinions.

 

I think that the problem is, since he offered himself up as the ambassador for the show, people think it's ok to bitch at him for things that are out of his control. I also think it's the fact that his cast-mates get insulted on Twitter in a way that they probably wouldn't be on Facebook because everyone you know is on it and if you act like an asshole it's not in anonymity or in a vacuum. I don't see this as "I don't want to be somewhere they don't worship the very ground I walk on". I see it as it gets tiring. I try to never look at the response to the tweets the artists I follow get. They are always unpleasant after a few pleasant ones. 

As a nobody I like Twitter better because the opportunity for oversharing is reduced compared to Facebook. However I also did think Twitter was just a fad and I think its level of popularity is due to Instagram. I joined Twitter in 2010 and absolutely none of my friends were on. It was to get info on either newspapers or artists you like but the exchange was mostly unilateral. Now, friends use it to tweet each other and every org and their mother has a Twitter.

 

Basically I am saying that, I get why he would say that and that really I don't see why it's a problem that he likes one platform or the other. He has been quite genuine about recognising the flaws of the show before and is openly admitting when he knows of a time he wasn't doing great acting-wise. I honestly think people should cut him some slack. He didn't even say that his fans are negative he basically said twitter is more of an enabler of negativity spreading around than FB is, which is true. I think when he was saying characters of the show, I think he is trying to not outright say "Laurel-haters" basically. Probably the aggressive anti-Felicity peeps too. I think he was trying not to single out a certain fraction of the vocally negative fans on Twitter because he didn't want to create a backlash... and created one anyway because people are ready to jump the gun at every single thing leaving his mouth. He literally can't win in this situation.

Edited October 29, 2014 by fantique

[Carrie Ann]

I agree with you, @fantique, and made many of these same points in my previous post in this thread. I brought up the FB office visit to offer another reason he might be inclined to tout FB as the best social media platform.

[Velocity23]

Stephen will be live-tweeting the episode tonite. So yeah CW wont let him leave the twitter twatter.

[Danny Franks]

Stephen will be live-tweeting the episode tonite. So yeah CW wont let him leave the twitter twatter.

 

He should instead post a facebook video of him live watching the episode, and commenting on it. And telling anecdotes during the ad breaks. Might be more entertaining than watching the Laurel Hour.

[A Cunning Stunt]

Stephen will be live-tweeting the episode tonite. So yeah CW wont let him leave the twitter twatter.

Heh. I certainly do admire/am grateful for what he gives to the show, the fandom & his appearances, but this part is somewhat tiresome. Didn't he just get done on his Facebook saying he was giving Twitter a break?

Anyhoo... In my imagination (or maybe not?) this is because TPTB need all the help they can get to encourage viewers to tune in & stay put through so much Laurel in 1 sitting.