Let me tell you guys something that happened recently:
I’ve been watching GQ interviews about actors and their ‘iconic’ roles (a debatable word, but okay). One of the ones I watched not long ago was Cillian Murphy, best known for his work as the Scarecrow in the Nolan Batman trilogy and Mr. Thomas Shelby in Peaky Blinders among other things. As a theatre person, I really enjoy learning about the process some actors have for acting, what people are like on set, and some behind the scenes info. It’s fun for me.
Well, I mentioned to a friend, let’s call them Danny, that I really enjoyed hearing Cillian’s natural Irish accent. Rather than agree or even disagree, they just state that Cillian’s a weird guy and that he’s a heavy alcoholic. First of all, that wasn’t where the conversation was going, and that’s an issue to bring up another time. Second, that information doesn’t sound…correct.
So, I researched.
I look into IMDB, Wikipedia, various interviews, and a bunch of articles, and I found nothing. What I did find was that Cillian Murphy prefers a quiet, non-fame life, he doesn’t take pics with fans but would prefer a handshake and a chat, he hikes and runs, he’s vegetarian (well, he was until he did Peaky Blinders), he drinks the occasional beer (he is Irish after all), he’s been married for 17 years with two sons, and he’s active in charity work. If he is an alcoholic and needed rehab, it was quiet and no one in the public would’ve known that, much less Danny. Nothing about him seems ‘weird’. But, after all, aren’t we all weird?
Where did my friend get their information?
Once I finished, I brought this to my friend, in which they said they must have been thinking of someone else. We had a good conversation about it, and I have no ill-thought to Danny. But I want to talk a little more about the importance of doing your own research.
With me, and I think with everyone, research comes first before accusation and judgement. I don’t want to base fact on something I can look up for myself. And not just when it comes to actors, but with everything else. Someone told you about a world event? Look it up and see what’s happening. That’s how I found out about the Indian Strike. Political beliefs? Definitely look into facts before choosing one way or another. That’s how I was able to determine my vote. You saw some scandalous musician gossip on TikTok? Read up on it so you know you can correctly ‘cancel’ a person and not support them. That’s how I learned to stay away from certain celebrities.
Am I saying to agree with everything? No. Gather an opinion from facts first. I don’t agree with everything I look into. Honestly, nor should you. If we operated on fact alone, we’d be so cold. Opinions second, facts first (in my opinion, lol).
It never hurts to look it up for yourself, and Google is free.
Research the tracks and maps before you jump on the train. Because you might end up going the wrong direction.
And now I know what to do if I ever meet Cillian Murphy in public.
Hugs
Alexandra
Alexandra TG 