To think people forget that actors are literally paid to act?

[MyAmusedOpalCrab]

I’ve seen it so many times - someone plays a villain, a cheater, a sleaze, a cold mother, whatever and suddenly the actor is personally disliked. Or worse, people are shocked when they see the actor behave differently in interviews, or in real life, or in their next role.

People genuinely forget that acting means embodying a character. It’s not a confessional. You’re not watching someone reveal their soul, you’re watching them perform. That’s literally their job.

A similar thing happens with “nice” characters too. If someone plays a sweet, wholesome person, fans act like they are that person and get all upset when they aren’t bubbly in real life.

AIBU to think that people have become weirdly bad at separating character from actor and it’s not just silly, it’s kind of worrying?

No

Not something I’ve noticed at all tbh.

I don’t know anyone who genuinely thinks an actor is a bad person because they played a villain. Or anyone who actually dislikes an actor because they played a villain.

The only thing I’ve heard people say is along the lines of “oh he always gives me the creeps a bit because he played that serial killer” or similar. They know he’s not actually a serial killer, but the show/film was so good that they kind of remember their emotional reaction to it and associate it involuntarily with the actor. But no logical, rational part of their brain is believing it.

Well actors have mentioned on interviews they occasionally cop abuse in supermarkets etc, because some people believe their character

There are also people who believe just because someone is a screen they live in mansions and all have butlers and nannies etc.

the general public are not the most intelligent bunch on occasions