When a retail employee infiltrates the inner circle of a music artist on the verge of stardom, it sets off a sequence of events where access and proximity become a matter of life and death.
Théodore Pellerin (Beau Is Afraid, Never Rarely Sometimes Always) plays Matthew, a retail clerk who edges his way into the in-crowd in the new film Lurker, which is in cinemas today.
Pellerin says in Los Angeles, where the film is mostly set, fame can seem paramount in determining a person’s self-worth.
“The idea of fame, or the idea of proximity to fame, can force some people to feel like it is the only thing that matters,” he told ABC News.
“And it is the only thing that constitutes an idea of something fulfilling and grand.
Matthew becomes an “agent of taste”. (Supplied: Universal Pictures)
Matthew pretends to be unfamiliar with budding star Oliver (Archie Madekwe) when Oliver walks into the clothing store where he works, which serves to bring the two of them closer.
“[Matthew] becomes kind of an agent of taste,” Pellerin said.
“So, that’s the only way, really, to have access to Oliver to make it seem as if he’s not a fan.
“And then it comes back many times in the movie — the idea of fans being like a slur, almost.
“So, he doesn’t want to be seen as a fan.
“He has to be someone who has real taste and is not just going to gobble up everything that he does, so that he has an importance for him.”
The world, and the industry, has changed
Madekwe (Saltburn, Midsommar) concedes the fan/star dynamic is a tricky one.
“You need fans in order to do this job,” Madekwe told ABC News.
Madekwe says there are a few things holding Oliver back from super stardom, including a lack of “sincere artistry”. (Supplied: Universal Pictures)
“In an ideal world, I guess you have a normal life, and you have a sense of anonymity, and you can also do your job.
He says even the biggest stars struggle these days to sell a movie.
“Leonardo DiCaprio was doing TikToks the other day for One Battle After Another, and now [the film has] done great at the box office, but there’s barely anyone that people will come out in hordes to see for just that actor,” he said.
He says, in the film, Oliver is held back from super stardom by the same things holding back most young artists with no real support system.
“It’s kind of a lack of confidence, lack of belief, but also a lack of, for Oliver, I think, actually a lack of sincere artistry,” Madekwe said.
“He’s finding himself being stuck, as a lot of artists do, of trying to make their next cool thing, and isn’t maybe making something from a sincere, vulnerable place, or it doesn’t feel like anyone’s perceiving that.
“That’s kind of why when he’s with Matthew, it feels like he’s receiving it as this sincere, genuine art; it fills him up so much.”
He says people can get caught up in a mental rat race about their careers, and it can get a bit heavy.
‘Being famous isn’t cool anymore’
Lurker is written and directed by Emmy-winning TV Writer and producer Alex Russell (The Bear, Beef) in his feature film debut.
Matthew infiltrates Oliver’s inner world. (Supplied: Universal Pictures)
Russell says he found the music scene in LA darkly comic, and chose to tell the story from the point of view of one of the many hangers-on he sees latch on to burgeoning stars.
“I feel like I was just writing what I knew as far as the LA scene,” Russell told ABC News.
Lurker offers his take on modern fame, online fan culture, social status, and social disorder.
“I feel like fundamentally being famous isn’t cool anymore,” Russell said.
“It’s sort of un-mysterious.
Lurker is in cinemas now.
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.abc.net.au ’
