1917 star George MacKay is an exception in today’s world. He doesn’t have a Twitter profile, he’s not on Instagram, and he doesn’t even have a private Facebook account. If you are a fan hoping that he’ll start posting selfies soon, don’t hold your breath.
MacKay is having what Hollywood calls “a moment.” After years of slowly but steadily progressing in his career, he finds himself as the star in one of the biggest movies of the year. While the actor is not nominated for an Oscar himself, 1917 has been showered with nominations. If there were ever a time to promote oneself and one’s work on social media, for MacKay, that moment would be now. Most actors would be hammering their Instagram and Twitter accounts with information about their upcoming films and appearances. But not George MacKay.
George MacKay doesn’t hate social media
The actor isn’t interested in social media. It’s not that he doesn’t like it or is opposed to it. It’s that he doesn’t care. In a recent interview with Lorraine Kelly on her talk show, MacKay talked about the idea as a whole. “I’ve never been one for it,” the actor says, “I had Facebook when I was at school and I just petered out using it.” He didn’t jump on the next trend either, saying, “that was when Twitter was kicking off and Instagram and it’s just not been for me.”
Host Lorraine Kelly mentioned that, given his rave reviews, this might be a good time to check out what people are saying about him on social media. MacKay disagreed. “I’m perfectly happy, I’d probably tie myself in knots if I looked at it,” he said, adding that he’s “a bit of an old man like that” and “not very technical.” MacKay isn’t alone among his peers either.
Jennifer Lawrence has spoken at great lengths about her experience in the iPhone celebrity photo hacking scandal that hit Hollywood in 2014. Nude photos of Lawrence were instantly spread around the internet, and Lawrence understandably felt incredibly violated. It’s no surprise that she has shied away from sharing anything social media. She does check out Instagram though, telling InStyle in 2018, “I’m a voyeur: I watch. I don’t speak.”
Kristen Stewart had even harsher words about social media. She sees it as the ultimate intrusion. “Buy a camera and you’re paparazzi; get a Twitter account and you’re an informant. It’s so annoying,” the actress told Flaunt. “Twitter [expletive] me over every day of my life,” she said. Stewart is often unfairly seen as one of the more prickly people in Hollywood, but it’s easy to say where she’s coming from here. George MacKay may just have the right idea in avoiding it all together.