Does Actors' Offscreen Behavior Affect How You See Their Work?

April 27, 2007

When Alec Baldwin taped his now-infamous interview for "The View" this week, he said he wanted to leave "30 Rock" so the show wouldn't be affected by his bitter custody battle.

Which led me to wonder: What does Alec Baldwin's offscreen behavior have to do with his onscreen work?

The only time I think about stars' lives while I'm watching their TV shows or movies is when it comes to relationships; it's weird to watch celebs who are in high-profile marriages be with other people (can anyone look at Brad Pitt without thinking about Angelina?). But I rarely think about their stints in rehab, or their recent fashion disasters, or even their use of inappropriate gay slurs while I'm watching them act as characters. What about you? Do stars' personal actions change the way you see them on screen?

Source

Alec Baldwin 30 Rock Buzz Poll

24 Comments

MonaCK 6 years 3 weeks

I think that what ends up happening with me is that I do end up judging the person a little bit more harshly... and its when they do something stupid (or I find out that they are a jerk in real life, something like that), that I see if I am able to get lost in the character again. If they are truly talented, I can let things slip...

LadyLibertine 6 years 4 weeks

I thought the fact he went on , was it the view? to set the record straight was good and bad. If he had not sunk to a level of insults of his ex but focused on his part on the tape and how what he called her was wrong. That would have been better. Maybe she does the things he says , I dont know but he is an adult. Fully in control of his own reactions, it is childish to blame another for our own choices

haze1nut 6 years 4 weeks

i don't think it should matter. the media blows things out of proportion, it's up to you to decide whether you care about it or not. i choose not to most of the time but still me andd my bf talked about alec baldwin and we both agreed that his kid deserved that 'talking down'. alec baldwin only gets to talk to his own kid 1hr every 2 weeks, and that lil brat shuts down her phone on purpose. how rude!! anyways, i love his character on 30 rock and i seriously love that show. so who cares what he does in his personal life, as long as he didn't do something close to killing anyone i'm fine with him.

Classy Amelia 6 years 4 weeks

For me, it really depends on the situation. The Tom Cruise behavior definitely effected my judgement about him. I no longer enjoy watching his movies because of the whole jumping on the couch on Oprah and the blown out media coverage on him.

UrbanBohemian 6 years 4 weeks

Absolutely. If the actor happens to act like a star when they're not working and ends up doing things that make headlines, then yes, it's hard for me to believe them when they are supposed to be acting. Humphrey Bogart once said that the only thing an actor should offer to the public is a good performance. He was so right, and unfortunately a lot of Hollywood A-Listers do not stand by that logic.

purrtykitty 6 years 4 weeks

For me, behavior normally doesn't have an affect. But along the lines with what others have said, I just can't get behind Tom Cruise anymore. I think it's mostly due to the media exposure he had last year regarding psychology and mental illness. I think it bothers me even more so, because there's just so much medical evidence supporting the existence of mental illnesses and the treatments available.

sabrinad2122 6 years 4 weeks

I think the way a star behaves taints the way you relate to their characters, but I don't think it would have a severe baring on whether you liked the show or movie as a whole. But some of these actors and actresses behavior makes you wonder if their from another planet. Silent birth, extreme surgery for cosmetic reasons, marriage and divorce in hours or days? Come on, what are they smoking?

smarler 6 years 4 weeks

It truly depends on the situation. For example, Isaiah Washington doesn't bother me, because I really feel that he is trying to work through his personal issues, and it doesn't affect my perception of his character. However, I have, and always will have, an issue with Jane Fonda for her role as Hanoi Jane. Which means that as badly as I want to see Georgia Rule with Felicity Huffman, I won't because Ms. Fonda is in it.

KerryG 6 years 4 weeks

I agree with the others. If I admire an actor's work onscreen, I am much more likely to ignore their offscreen bad behavior (unless it's really heinous). I think Russell Crowe sounds like a first rate jack*ss, but he's a good actor, so I'll keep seeing (most of) his movies. The only Tom Cruise movies I ever liked in the first place were Rain Man and A Few Good Men, so I am all too happy to boycott anything else he's had a hand in. I've also been known to get further biased against actors I don't like for really stupid things, though. I remember reading some article where Jennifer Aniston rattled off this list of about 15 different ethnic cuisines (almost all of which I love) that she "won't eat" and thinking "wow, what a boring, unimaginative person." Years later I came down firmly in Angelina's camp partly because of that, even though she sounds like quite the whack-job herself, charity work excepted.

eBennet 6 years 4 weeks

I generally try not to get too attached to celebrities, even as an admirer of their acting abilities, because if I like someone I will inevitably find out something that makes me disappointed. But it generally doesn't affect my ability to enjoy watching their projects. Therefore, I was surprised when I couldn't enjoy watching Mission Impossible III at all, mostly because of Tom Cruise and all the weird stuff that had come out about him.

yiddidea 6 years 4 weeks

It depends for me too. Tom Cruise films are out for me now as I don't care to support such an idiot who spreads harmful untruths about psychiatry. Isaiah Washington's character on Grey's was never one I cared about, so I just pay less attention to his story lines now. I guess I don't see why we should treat a celeb any different than we would someone else in our lives. If you have a good friend who does something hurtful do you still go celebrate their birthday? So why should we support a celeb who does something awful? I dunno..it is a hard one to call.

swwonder 6 years 4 weeks

Didn't Alec Baldwin narrate 'The Royal Tenenbaums'?. I don't care what he does - I'll always love that film. I'm not sure, I dislike Kirsten Dunst and I've only seen two of her films. But I don't think not watching any of her films is a result of me not liking her, it's a result of none of her films raising my interest. If that makes sense :?

WhatTheFrockBlog 6 years 4 weeks

It depends on the situation. I really never enjoyed a Tom Cruise film (except Magnolia) even BEFORE he went crazy so his attitude now didn't really affect me in that way. And I've been anti-Mel Gibson LONG before his anti-semitic remarks. I mean, I hate them more than ever now, but I was never a big fan in the first place. But Michael Richards' racial tirade didn't stop me from watching three Seinfeld reruns in syndication every night. Winona Ryder's shoplifting didn't stop me from wanting her to make a major comeback. And Alec Baldwin's family issues won't stop me from loving him in almost everything he's in.

cageyme 6 years 4 weeks

By and large the offscreen behavior doesn't bother me. But I don't really care for Tom Cruise any more because of his comments about depression. I have dealt with depression for many years and his attitude about medication and science really irritated me. Having said that, I am now going to backtrack by saying that I did like Mission Impossible 3. Sigh. I'm inconsistent, yes, I know.

PoeStorm 6 years 4 weeks

It depends. Sometimes I can watch them anyways and not be affected, but it varies. For example, whenever I see Isaiah Washington on Gray's I think, "You hate gay people."

Linda McP 6 years 4 weeks

I'm with blogsap when it comes to Tom Cruise; I really don't enjoy his films (but to be honest, maybe I never did). Same with Russell Crowe; I can't get past his boorish behavior. As for AB, he's never been a favorite (sorry, Buzz!) so nothing will change.

blogsap 6 years 4 weeks

it depends. but i DO know i can no longer enjoy a Tom Cruise film.

Dickey Roscombe 6 years 4 weeks

Maybe I'm weird, but I just always assume that actors (and really any high profile celebrities) are actually terrible people in real life unless I have very good reason to believe otherwise. The rise in "celebreality" television has only strengthened this belief of mine. Knowing that Alec Baldwin talks to his daughter like a cranky, narcissistic actor talks to his assistant who has delivered a 2% latte instead of skim is no great surprise. I feel bad for his daughter, but then again, I feel bad for any child with the misfortune to have been born to famous people.

LuciLu 6 years 4 weeks

I think it all depends on the situation. I am not judging Alec Baldwin because obviously the whole situation with his daughter and Kim Basinger is very messed up, and we will most likely never know the whole story.

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