Sunday, January 16, 2011

What's Next for Alex O'Loughlin?

By Pam

Photobucket
One might ask, If not for fortune and fame, why become an actor? It’s a fair question. Recently I was talking to a family member who is an accomplished producer. We were discussing Alex O’Loughlin and if he had a manager (managers aid in advancing careers).  I said I thought he did not. I explained that what I know of Alex he wasn’t looking for fame.  The producer’s wife, who was listening in, said, “Interesting.”  I was taken aback by that response. Is it that much of an anomaly for an actor to just want to act because he enjoys it? What happens if Alex becomes famous?  He has said, “I’ll deal with it.”

2005
Alex O'Lachlan is touted as one of Australia's most talented up-and-coming actors but says he's "absolutely terrified" by the thought of fame. "Fame, for all intents and purposes, is not something that I aspire to," he said.

2008
“I can’t really imagine what it would be like to have to be a celebrity…. Not being able to leave the house without getting hassled by paparazzi and stuff like that all the time. That’d be a bit of a nightmare I’d imagine.”
“Fame is kind of frightening. I don’t yearn for it,” O’Loughlin says.  “All of a sudden, you are driving home one night, and there’s your head, 30 feet tall, on a billboard on Sunset Boulevard. I was an actor in theater in Sydney, and I’ve done little indie films that paid nothing. I am not an actor for that kind of recognition.”

Aug. 2010
(On losing his anonymity) "A lot of actors are private people. I think a lot of actors really don't live the life that the rest of the world thinks we would live. I don't know...we'll see what happens."
Q: Are you okay with not being anonymous anymore?
"Not really.  I may have to move to Hawaii or something. [laughs]
Unfortunately, it seems like Alex isn’t able to “deal with it” very well these days because of the circumstances.

Nov. 2010
"You move away from your family and friends to a small island [Oahu] where everyone knows your business..."

When filming Hawaii Five-0 out and about on Oahu, people are always watching. He doesn’t have much of a personal life because of his work schedule, but when he goes out he’s usually approached by admirers.  It’s a sad day when an exhausted celebrity can’t sit and enjoy a bit of food without being pressed by a fan. A paparazzo caught him in an intimate moment with his lady at LAX last week. Then TMZ stopped him before he boarded his plane back to Oahu.

Hawaii Five-0 is one of the most popular shows on TV, and Alex’s star has catapulted because of it. His most devoted fans have been joined by new ones just discovering him, from all over the world. Alex has become what he has feared for years.  It was inevitable. He is famous.  What now?
Photobucket

8 comments:

  1. It is of course inevitable. Even if an actor doesn't want to become famous per se, he has to pursue it in order to get the recognition needed to get the roles he really wants. I think for Alex, that ship has already sailed, with all its pros and cons. I'm just waiting now for some really great film roles to come of it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Exactly Rainy! If you want people to recognize you on the big screen or small screen, you have to accept that they will recognize you on the streets as well.

    If an actor wants to stay anonymous or private, then how can he expect to get cast when directors/producers keep going Alex who?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Interesting article... I was in Hawaii to see the premier of H50 @ Sunset on the Beach last September. Two days before the premier, I was touring Kualoa Ranch and H50 happened to be filming there. As the tour bus passed the cast, I couldn't help myself and said "Alex!" (they were not filming at the time, just standing around) and he popped up his head to see who called out his name. Surprisingly, there was only one other person on the tour bus who knew who he was (even the driver didn't know him). So, is Alex all that famous? Not yet, I believe. But it's coming. BTW, most of the people on the bus knew Daniel Dae Kim when he drove up on his motorcycle.

    ReplyDelete
  4. It's a vicious circle, I think. In Hollywood, there's no success without fame, and no privacy once fame is achieved. For my part, I think it's appalling to approach a perfect stranger during a private moment (and I don't care if you see that person every week on television - if you haven't been introduced, that person is a stranger) and disturb them for your own personal gratification (photos, autographs, etc). While I sympathize with Alex's loss of privacy, he can't have it both ways. He can't expect to have fans but disregard them (as far as I've heard, he's always gracious with his fans), and he can't expect to have a successful career without being famous and recognized. People have trouble with boundaries, especially when they feel they "know" the actor in question because they see them regularly.

    ReplyDelete
  5. want to anonymous? go home and be a plumber and act in community theatre.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I agree. If Alex really isn't seeking fame why did he come to America? He could have stayed in OZ and acted in relative obscurity. He didn't. He pretends he doesn't want it, maybe in case he doesn't make it as an actor here. It's like a defense mechanism.And I would NEVER approach him in public if I saw him say, in a restaurant for instance. I may discreetly watch him intently, but I would leave him alone. I am a devoted Alex fan. I have been in his personal space several times, but I have felt awkward about it. That won't keep me from wanting to see him again. But these close encounters are always on his terms at organised functions. Deep down he must realise he can't be known as an actor and be anonymous in public, especially to the paps.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Alex said that it is ignorant of people that persue a career in intertainment to get angry when they get famous and are persued by fans. He also said he doesn't aspire to fame but does it for the love of the work. He also said that without fans his job is pointless. I think he went to America because there is better choices of roles and of cause better salaries and more fans (he knows that with it comes fame and loss of anonymity). I have never really seen that he said he doesn't want the fame, he just said that it sometimes scared him.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Alex is an extremely intelligent man and an amazing actor.but I do believe to intrude on someone when there eating or with their families is just straight up rude..some people need to respect that he is human and give him space...

    ReplyDelete