Glen Powell Is Thirsty to Sell Out, But In a Good Way

By Emma Chance | Celebrity | June 11, 2024 |

By Emma Chance | Celebrity | June 11, 2024 |

Maybe you’re tired of hearing about Glen Powell, Hollywood’s current darling. But that’s just part of the Hollywood game, and it’s a game he’s willing to play. Eager, in fact.

“I find the gamification of the business fun,” he told the New York Times. “How do we make a movie that is rewatched and rewatched over the decades?” He aspires to the “cultural power” in appealing to the masses.

“To be a lasting success in Hollywood, you have to make people money. You have to go, ‘Who is the audience for this? Are you giving people a reason to buy tickets?’ And if you don’t have a very clear answer, move on, no matter how much you may love the script or want to work with the director.”

So, that’s why he’s everywhere right now. He’s banking as much cultural power as he can, and then he’ll use that power to do the indie stuff.

“Small, intimate movies are also on my bingo board of things I want to do, but rewatchable is an important world. This is where I think actors who want to be serious get it wrong. Flogging yourself and showing how tortured and serious you can be—people often don’t rewatch, which takes all of the power out of it.”

A writing teacher once asked me, “Do you want to be successful, or do you want to be good?” Glen Powell wants to be successful, and more power to him. But he isn’t above the grunt work, either.

“I always find it lame when actors are like, I just want to act in the movie. I don’t want to promote the movie. If you want this career, part of your job—a big part—is doing everything you can to help sell your movies. Doing publicity matters. You’ve got to give people a reason to care.”

He might as well be standing on the street corner, holding a cardboard sign: “Leading man for hire.”