It’s Big Movie season, and I’ve watched nearly all of the major releases this year—but these days I’m perhaps even more riveted by the onslaught of promotional and press content related to new movies on social media.
I saw most of these films at media screenings in the fall, during the depths of the SAG strike, and back then I sorely felt the lack of press around them. After all, I had questions: What was Bradley Cooper’s connection to Leonard Bernstein? How did Emma Stone manage to evoke a toddler so convincingly? Where the heck did Charles Melton come from? I yearned to hear the stories behind the films from the actors themselves, even if it perhaps entailed pontificating about craft and trotting out the same handful of anecdotes across late-night shows, podcasts, and, ahem, online publications.
Now, thankfully, the actors are back—and they’ve brought puppies.
Press tours have returned with a vengeance, right in time for awards season, and taken together, they’re better than ever. (Some, dare I say, even surpass the films they’re promoting in entertainment value.) And often they’re barely about the films themselves—the projects are merely the pretext to bring together beloved costars, give them prompts or props, and spin the ensuing chemistry into viral moments. (And it must be emphasized: Full credit goes to the media workers who brilliantly conceive and expertly execute these pearls of content.)
Here are some recent favorites…and savor the moment because this flood is bound to trickle off come the new year. Dry January indeed!
