10 Crazy Actor Truths We Just Learned
5. Elle Fanning Lost A Huge Movie Role Because She Didn't Have Enough Instagram Followers
Apparently being an acclaimed actress with a string of hit projects to her name wasn't enough for Elle Fanning to score a major movie franchise gig. In a recent interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Fanning revealed the most bizarre reason she didn't book a juicy role:
"I'm not gonna say what it was... but I didn't get a part once for something big because - and it might not have just been this reason, but this was all the feedback that I heard - was because I didn't have enough Instagram followers at the time."
Obviously it's natural to look first at major, evergreen IP like The Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars, though many have pointed to the role most likely being Jean Grey in X-Men: Apocalypse.
After all, Sophie Turner - who was ultimately cast as Jean - even admitted back in 2019 that she won the role because she had more social media followers than the other actress up for the part. As such, it's easy to draw the dots.
That Fanning - who currently has 6.3 million Instagram followers - lost a role for not having a large enough digital following is deeply baffling.
Movies studios are always chasing trends and trying to stay ahead of the curve, but it's also supremely foolish to tie an actor's worth or popularity to their socials.