Despite being one of Hollywood’s most prolific up-and-coming stars, Maya Hawke reveals how she has been informed just how important an actor’s social-media presence can play in a movie’s production in the current Hollywood landscape. The daughter of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman, the star made her acting debut in the 2017 BBC Little Women miniseries adaptation, but her breakout role would come with her debut as Robin Buckley in Stranger Things season 3. Earning acclaim and fan support, Hawke was promoted as a series regular and set to reprise her role one last time in Stranger Things season 5.

While speaking with Josh Horowitz on Happy Sad Confused, Hawke revealed that she has encountered a noticeable shift in how Hollywood approaches social media. While she is less enthusiastic about apps such as Instagram, she learned that an online following can make or break a movie’s production. When she informed certain filmmakers that she intended to leave the online landscape, they responded by informing her that they had been given a set number of accumulated followers that a cast must collectively obtain to receive any kind of approval from a studio.

“It’s like, ‘I don’t care about Instagram; Instagram sucks.’ Right, but just so you know, if you have over this many followers, you can get the movie funded. Well, I want to make the movie, so you know, like, it’s a really confusing line to walk. I’ve talked to so many smart directors, I’m talking to them about how I’m going to delete my Instagram, and they’re like, ‘Just so you know, when I’m casting a movie with some producers, they hand me a sheet with the amount of collective followers I have to get of the cast that I cast.

Hawke even stated that she was informed about what would happen should she go ahead and remove her social media presence. Her fellow cast member’s account would have to make up the required number of followers that would be missing from Hawke’s deleted profile. Check out Hawke’s statement below:

“So if you delete your Instagram and I lose those followers, understand that these are the kinds of people I need to cast around you.'”

What Hawke’s Reveal Means For The Current Hollywood Landscape

A Focus On Following Is An Evolution Of An Older, Controversial Industry Practice

Hollywood has a proven history of taking advantage of a star’s popularity when developing features. From the 1920s to 1960s, the “star system” saw studios constructing personas for well-known actors to create an idealized figure who could draw in an audience or be easily identified due to the types of roles that they’d play. This trend set up public appearances and carefully handled their public relations to maintain the illusion. This would often cross over into the personal lives of the subjects, as they were forced to live by the expected societal norms of the times and hide any hints of negativity or deviation from this to avoid scrutiny.

While the “star system” may no longer hold the same weight it once did thanks to industry changes, many critics doubt that the concept of a movie star is still relevant. It is undoubtedly that elements of it still exist in some form. Social media offer an instantaneous connection between a performer and their audience to a degree that the tabloid writers and publicists of the past could have imagined. With Hawke’s reveal, it is clear that studios have been keen to adapt their tactics in the modern age, making sure that whoever they cast can reach the widest demographics possible.

Our Thoughts On Hawke’s Hollywood Social Media Mindset Reveal

Worries About Online Presences Can Harm The Industry’s Future

It’s no secret that social media plays a key role in how Hollywood operates. August 2024 saw reports emerge that when it comes to well-known franchises in particular, studios were taking heed of the loudest voices online to determine their direction, no matter if these calls were made in good faith or a toxic mindset.

As such, Hawke‘s response indicates that this overreach extends to the artists themselves. With studios so concerned about followings, many potential stars and artists with a smaller presence could be overlooked, stifling the potential for new talent to emerge and shape Hollywood.

Source: Happy Sad Confused