#tioy premiere

[dgct2]

Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine at the New York premiere of “The Idea of You.”

[nickmillerscaulk]

i spent this past weekend in nyc and all i got was time spent in the same rooms as aaron tveit and sutton foster and jordan fisher, an afternoon in brooklyn, sunburn on my nose, two overpriced-but-delicious mezcal cocktails, and a collector's edition copy of rwrb

[bbjobo]

Hello hi it’s me, your resident entertainment PR enthusiast. I simply need to talk about the sequel announcement. This is all speculation, but I work in entertainment-adjacent communications and once convinced a household name celebrity to stay at my event to do select press interviews when his wife was going to go into labor at literally any minute, so I like to think I've got a pretty good sense of all of this.

So buckle in, because I'm about how actually fantastic this rollout was, because I’d wager they’ve been planning this since the premiere. 

RWRB came out truly smack-dab in the middle of the actors' strike. We all know just how much press we must have missed out on, because the strike started before promo would have kicked off in earnest. And when it was finally over in November, the actors are potentially out of contract for promotion, and that’s not even taking into consideration that the holidays are coming up and the six weeks from American Thanksgiving to New Year’s is truly a black hole of press. So this little movie has to rely almost entirely on fan reaction and word of mouth to hit because they’re so limited in what they can do for promo. And it IS a hit! Records are broken! Comments for an extended version (which, ok Matthew we get it, does not exist) and a sequel start almost immediately.

The marketing team makes the most of what they’ve got: they’re keeping up the official character accounts, they’re dropping deleted scenes and BTS. We get cornettos! The fireside scene! Bloopers! Notably absent? Brownstone Thanksgiving. We’ve seen BTS photos of it, we know it exists. Thanksgiving 2023 would have been a great time to drop it, but they don’t. This is the approximate point at which my own personal sequel speculation began. After the strike ends, the posting pace slows considerably but it’s still consistent. It’s just enough to keep it in your mind but not enough to be like “why are you still posting this much about it?” And this continues into 2024.

On the contracting side, conversations were likely actively happening at this point. I wouldn’t be surprised if negotiations picked up literally as soon as the strike ended. The producers would have had that time to get Matthew and Casey back on board and be fully prepped and ready to move on to contracting actors the minute they could. It’d be a shot in the dark to try to guess when these were finalized, but at some point between November 9 and May 9, yeah, they’re in.

But whew, Nicholas is booked and BUSY. Mary & George drops internationally March 5, The Idea of You closes SXSW on March 17, two weeks later M&G starts airing in the US and Canada, and a month after that, TIOY is available for streaming (and limited theatrical release, which is another whole post), and in between all those premieres, he’s everywhere. He’s criss-crossing the country (and tbh the Atlantic Ocean) for all of these appearances, truly going non-stop. The pacing of the premieres makes it nearly impossible to squeeze in another project announcement, and if they had, it would have been a bigger part of every interview he did after, which is something his own team would be working to balance. Plus between TIOY and RWRB, Prime would have been pitching stories against themselves. Better to let him finish out his other promotional appearances and then switch over.

At the same time, we’ve got awards and red carpet season starting. At nearly every red carpet appearance not for their own projects, both Taylor and Nick are asked about a sequel. If an interviewer is given enough time, they ask about a sequel. Sure, fans comment about a sequel on every vaguely rwrb social post from an official account, but the press asking about a sequel felt like a lot to me. Everyone always gave the same vague answer, that they’d be up for it if the story is right, that they don’t know but would be happy to. (Except one time, Nick does slip up and give an answer that feels a little more definitive here where he says “conversations are being had” all the way back in late February/early March). Press are asking the question so consistently that it felt like if it wasn’t happening, PR teams would have put the sequel on the do not ask list.

Then Prime starts actually ramping up on a FYC campaign for the movie. I'm gonna be honest, I was so surprised. It's a rom com, the odds of a rom com getting any sort of awards recognition is so slim, but I thought, "ok, sure, use FYC as a way to get the promo boost they need for an announcement of whatever's coming next." And then I looked up and Variety has picked it as the winner in the best television movie category, which is blowing my mind. The other categories they're submitting in are stacked and I think a nomination beyond television movie will be a long shot, but again, it's big for it to even be considered. And if they're being talked about, that means Prime's gotta put out a great showing for their FYC campaign.

Which brings us to this week. We start off on Monday with Nick at the Met Gala referring to Uma as his mother-in-law. Incredible. Love it. Wednesday and Thursday are a one-two punch of a FYC event and fan event, and the gang’s all here. At the FYC, we get the industry side of things: new portraits and interviews with Deadline, process talk, etc. Because this little rom com is actually doing pretty well and beating the odds? Knowing what we know now, the PR teams spent this week pre-briefing the press on the sequel announcement. Notable (at least to my knowledge) the sequel question doesn't get asked at the FYC event. Because the press already knows it's coming.

Now, on to yesterday. They do a fan screening and Q&A, and they literally roll out the red carpet. Nine months after the premiere and exactly six months after the strike ended, they get the gang back together with fans of the movie, who they relied on so heavily during the strike to help make the movie a success. The tagline on the screen’s giant promo image has been updated to specifically thank fans for “making history with us.” The moderator for the Q&A is the same person who interviewed Taylor and Nick at the beginning of FYC campaign season, their first joint interview since GQ (right? pretty sure. it's all a blur tbh). And at the end of the Q&A, minutes before 12 AM ET, when the embargo on the press release would have lifted, they make the announcement not to press, but to the fans. The fans who loved the book, who watched it over and over, who spread the word about the movie to help make it one of Prime’s top three rom coms OF ALL TIME.

It’s just… an absolute masterclass in how to execute a major announcement that embraces the fans in a time where fandom and interaction between creators and fans can be an absolute minefield. Prime saw the opportunity to lean into the fannishness of it all and they took it and it was a slam dunk.

So where do we go from here? IDK but here’s some unconnected thoughts in list form like Alex would want.

The book’s 5th anniversary is next Wednesday, the 14th.

Casey’s been posting about working on [redacted] for months at this point, which is almost certainly the screenplay

Nick mentioned needing to be back in the UK for filming soon

They would probably like to release this in US election off-cycle years, so that means 2025 or 2027 (and 2027 is too far away). 2026 would be less bad since it’s a midterm election, but still.

Filming could reasonably start sooner rather than later, and even without an unfinished script

I guess we’re back on content watch for blond hair and BTS pictures

[meraki-yao]

Ok I got four asks in my inbox about the new Nick interview and I'm actually mad. I'm actually livid and exasperated because I've been getting and answering similar asks over and over again, and yet people still come to me with the same statement and the same conviction EVEN AFTER I POINTED OUT EVERY FUCKING FACT THAT CONTRADICTS IT.

Do you really need a 19-year-old to teach you reading comprehension and media literacy?

Ok, fine.

Statement One: Nick doesn't appreciate RWRB, he's brushing it aside, which is why it wasn't mentioned in the New York Times

One: Editorials don't always portray the actual thoughts or agenda of the interviewee.

Unlike a video interview or a podcast interview where we can hear the whole conversation directly from Nick with his voice, and even if there are cuts and edits we can pick it up via visual or audio continuity, in a written editorial the only thing we can rely on is the writer's words, or in other words, the writer's paraphrase or quotation of what Nick said to him. This gives much bigger room for any changes or manipulation in content because we have nothing else to reference.

It is clear that in the past three editorials, the writer or the magazine itself has deliberately demeaning and devaluing RWRB. In NY Magazine, it was only mentioned in one line and degraded to "a queer take on a common straight trope" (see the choice of word "president's daughter"), with the implication being at its core, it's a straight story/ reliant on past straight stories to be interesting; Hunger Magazine calls it fujoshi-pleasing (fujoshi: Japanese slang, denoting how a straight woman who enjoys fictional gay content is "rotten", too ruined to be married, an insult to both the audience/fans and the movie itself ); and this time New York Magazine didn't even mention RWRB, when let's be honest, it's Nick's biggest breakout role.

"Once Is Chance, Twice is Coincidence, Third Time's A Pattern" this is deliberate. I can't say what the agenda is, my guess is some extent of latent homophobia, but it's clear that this is a fucking pattern. In fact, besides the hidden agenda of devaluing RWRB, these editorials show another hidden agenda, but that's something for a later day. PM me id you want to now, I won't discuss that one on my public platform yet.

Again, there is so much more room for twisting and hiding words in a written editorial. In all the video interviews Nick did, especially in the UK, when has he ever avoided a question about RWRB? When has he ever not shown gratitude towards the project?

Two: In all video evidence that can't be manipulated, that clearly shows Nick's own thoughts which not influenced by any other party, he has made it clear that he adores RWRB.

Why else would he sign books during the M&G London premiere, going as far as to stay behind after the event just to sign books? Same with the LA M&G premiere and TIOY premiere: those were promotions for other projects, he had a valid reason to refuse to sign the RWRB books and posters, but he didn't, always signing with a big smile on his face, even playfully signing on Taylor's face. He said it himself in his Instagram post, and I quote: "The love that Henry has received has been one of the most heartwarming things to watch. It's been difficult to not talk about him. So thank you for seeing him for all he is. He was a joy to bring to life." There's your proof, directly from the man himself.

Statement Two: Nick's not interested in doing a sequel, he said he's done playing princes and he's done playing romantic leads

One: "Done playing princes" doesn't mean literally done playing princes, it means he wants to try more roles and not be stuck with only being known as the "prince" guy. (even though he's literally a prince lol)

Plus, he said that after Robert, but then Henry came along and he was attracted to Henry as a character with his scared but loving heart. He doesn't just view Henry as a prince, he views Henry as a complex, delicate person who so happens to be a prince. Him saying he's done playing princes means in the future, he doesn't really want another royal on his filmography, but this doesn't mean he doesn't want to continue Henry's story. With the given context, namely asking him about future projects he wants to take up, "he's done playing princes" and "he doesn't want to play Henry anymore" are not mutually inclusive.

Two: "Done playing romantic leads" means he wants to try new things and take up new projects that aren't romance films.

This doesn't include the continuation of already established characters i.e. sequels, this just means if he were to take up brand new projects, he wants to try something else. Sequels are inherently different from new projects because again, sequels are based on already established characters.

Three: He said several times ON VIDEO that he'd be in for a sequel

In this one, when asked if he'd be up for a sequel, he said, and I quote "Look, I think with any opportunity of doing a sequel, I think, you know, the script has to be right. But obviously, it was so lovely to see how many people it touched and having that resonance is incredibly important to me, so, yeah. Of course."

In this one, when asked if they have had conservation on a potential sequel, he said, and again I quote: "Yeah, I mean definitely had conversations. I think we're all on the same page in the sense that, you know, the script needs to be right, and sort of all the different components need to be right because we made something that has such a positive effect and I think the last thing you'd wanna do is ruin that or take that in a way, so, you know, the conversations are definitely being had."

And there are more videos from red carpet interviews that I can't be bothered to find right now but he says more or less the same thing.

(look I even transcribed it)

Not only is he on board with a sequel, he's also being careful about it to make sure once they do get to making it, it's something good. He's on board, and he values it. And again, that's directly from him.

We have a phrase in Chinese: 斷章取義, meaning "breaking off a small part of an article and deriving the meaning from that single part" That's what so many of you, in particular, the people who come to my inbox with the sentiments of the above-mentioned statement are doing. Please, use critical thinking and look at the whole picture. Stop making judgments from the surface of one source.

Tagging my friends @alittlefrenchtree and @myteavsricochet because it looks like they've been getting the same things I got

[i-hate-loving-nicholas]

It’s TIOY premiere!! Way to go, August Moon!

[bigassbowlingballhead]

ruminating while on the clock here but im back on the same suit in the tioy premiere and then nick mentioning he was staying at a friend’s house in malibu 😵‍💫 let a girl dream etc etc

no no you're on to something

[sincenewyorks]

i been watching veep for two weeks now and i just realized that dan is played by reid scott, who i was like 5 ft away from tioy premiere

[soopertiddies]

Have you seen how they have dressed NG at the TIOY premiere?

I don't wanna talk about it, but I will say one thing:

They're lucky his pretty face carries.

[alexsleftbicep]

I wish taylor would share his clothes with nick lol seriously though, I don't know if he has a stylist or if he deliberately wears unflattering clothes to be taken more seriously as an actor so people see him apart from just his looks, but I would love to see him in a well fitting flattering outfit

Taylor’s style and Nick’s style are very different from each other. Taylor has an obvious interest in fashion and he’s really lucky that he’s found such a great partnership with Jason Bolden as his stylist!

Jason has an amazing ability to dress all of his clients in ways that highlight them (Yara Shahidi, Cynthia Erivo, Sabrina Carpenter etc.)

I’m not entirely sure who Nick’s stylist is but I do know that she also works with Kit Connor and Ncuti Gatwa who have looked brilliant at theur respective events. So I think the styling is partly due to his personal style and partly due to her not collaborating with him in the way that Jason does with Taylor.

I did also see something about Nick saying he likes to play with silhouettes and take liberties with shapes in suits - explaining the recent oversized fits of his looks! That being said i do feel that the LA M&G premier look could have been tackled in a slightly different way that still kept to the oversized vibe.

I will say that i think the fact that the LA look was erring on the side of traditional (black suit and white shirt) that the oversizedness of it is what made it look a bit weird? But the London look was also oversized and didn’t look at all out of place - same with the loose fitting suit at SXSW.

Taylor does also seem to be a lot more comfortable when it comes to dressing and flaunting his fashion. Maybe it’s the model in him or maybe it’s just the general confidence he has that allows him to do so. I have a feeling that once Nick settles into the fact he’s becoming more known and popular that maybe his general confidence might grow and his style will follow suit and become a bit more distinctive.

At the end of the day it’s what Nick feels comfortable in and hopefully when the Fendi contract ends (not that the Fendi is bad, it just limits his options a bit - though he was in Armani (i think?) for TIOY at SXSW) he might continue to explore his style a bit more.

[alarrytale]

Nick posted a pic with his girlfriend 😢

https://www.instagram.com/stories/nicholasgalitzine/3328089804834182808?igsh=c2xkY3VjN2M0eW9p

Marta, I know that you sometimes post about Nick. This is on his stories right now. Is this from The Idea of You? He doesn’t say. It also doesn’t look like a man and a woman to me? But it’s hard to tell. https://www.instagram.com/stories/nicholasgalitzine/3328089804834182808?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&igsh=MWxicnM0dmgzeWwycQ==

Hi, anons!

It is a man and a woman, presumably Nick and a gf, and he's posted it to make people speculate and talk. It's a coy and suggestive photo. Why does he need his fans to speculate and talk? Because he's got two projects out he's promoting, so he's on double duty. His LA premiere of M&G is today so his promo is now focused on america. It's the perfect timing for a soft launch.

The timing of the photo should tell you everything there is to know about the validity of the relationship. I was really hoping he wouldn't go this route, but i talked to someone over messages ages ago and i speculated on him entering a PR/bearding relationships for TIOY promo. It fits the pattern of his previous behaviour. So even if i'm disappointed, i'm not surprised. We'll see how this developes.

[yrsonpurpose]

Will we get reviews of TIOY once the premiere is done? Need to know how bad it is on the scale of

ok-> terrible-> jesus christ Nick did they have you at gunpoint when you signed for this?

yes we have some reviews 👀 and they're all good so far, so in general i'm really happy for him that it seems to be a hit

[meraki-yao]

Twitter is not the greatest place to be rn for many reasons, but I think people are missing out on some things that are basically common sense:

Taylor can promote (which, by the way, these promotions are part of the “For Your Consideration” campaigns for awards seasons, especially the awards the movie is nominated for) because he's in LA. These are not regular or fancy screenings, so it doesn't make sense to make Nick travel.

Nick's projects have close promotional periods. Like, they overlap at some point. And he's going to focus on it because it's his job. It doesn't mean he's moved on — it means his projects must also be promoted. I think people don't know or forget the strike was during the promotional period the movie premiered.

Some people are upset with Nick because he's not talking about the movie any more. And I think most of them are clinging to the super online Nick of a few years ago or even 💜 Nick who promoted. And, again, the strike got in the way. He has to be in the USA during March, so he can likely make it to screenings or the GLAAD Awards if his schedule lets him. But people need to remember that he's over there because of his other projects, not RWRB only.

I think people diminish what the boys are doing, and pit them against each other because neither is doing what they want. And forget what they've been saying about the movie, the characters, the book. They care about it deeply, and of course, they deserve to talk about it. I hope people calm down and stop being upset because things are moving forward, but that doesn't mean that RWRB is over.

I mean I pretty much agree with you here. Incredibly well analysed and well said.

And I want to highlight your final paragraph. This is the problem with parasocial relationships with any form of celebrity: delusional fans so easily start to feel like they have some say in the celebrity's actions.

About the promo, yeah, that's his job too, and I think the disparity in reaction is kind of partly because we missed our RWRB promo due to the strike, so it suddenly goes from "he's not talking about this" to "he's talking about this a lot". (I know he's most likely gonna be at the TIOY premiere but it just occurred to me that M&G is a UK-based production though?) RWRB is in a really unique and weir circumstance where we missed out on promo and press almost entirely.

And I get missing Nick being chronically online, it seemed really entertaining, but he's just growing up and entering a new phase on how he wants to manage his social media. His past six Instagram posts were all pretty formal "business" stuff. Which, people change. I've seen people call it a rebrand but really I just think it's him changing how he views social media. (personally, I did the same thing at 2022: went from chronically online and sharing everything to being relatively inactive and only posting when it's something memorial like a birthday or a festival)

I think at the end of day we should look to their direct actions: the primary source evidence, so to speak. Nick happily signs RWRB book, refers to Henry as himself, and teases Taylor playfully through book signing. It's clear he loves this project, and experiences/ love like this doesn't fade.

[nickmillerscaulk]

oh my goD the video of anne hathaway at the tioy premiere tonight saying "i feel like i keep blooming" in response to how we usually only hear young coming of age stories??!!!

[oliver-stark-lover]

Wait is there someone stalking Nicholas?? What happened?

Oh , yes, there is . I'm not 100% sure of her name but she went to Austin to watch the premiere of TIOY and asked everyone basically where he was staying just to 'casually' walk in there to find him

[myteavsricochet]

Don't get me wrong I love Taylor but I find it unfair how Nick is belittled and put aside and never praised for what he deserves even about rwrb and sometimes it seems like he doesn't even exist to people when he is working so hard for his career

sksksksk no I'm sorry, normally I would have deleted it but it made me laugh too much because where the hell did this come from? no seriously on what basis did you think of such a thing? 😭 how can you say that Nick is ignored or not celebrated enough for his work when people talk about him everywhere and everyone follows him for everything and he was perhaps the most praised and considered for rwrb and everyone always talked about his skill in the film and in what he did for henry like... did you actually send this ask for a couple of posts/tweets going around about how important tzp is to the movie and some love rant about how much he cares about the movie? 😭 please and don't act as if in two weeks we won't have 7 episodes of his show and we will obviously talk about that and the promo and then the premiere of tioy and then the promo and then the release of tioy everything in two months... and for an event in his name and some content of Taylor you come to tell me that Nick is not considered or praised? Come on 😭 I'm sure you're better than this.

(Let's specify for the umpteenth time that it's not against Nick, we love Nick, this ask just made me laugh because it really seems a bit too much and it's absurd how hard they try every time there is something good for that man and people talk about him RIGHTLY without useless hatred on his side)

[bigassbowlingballhead]

TZP buddies with Dwayne Wade and Gabrielle Union, who is a producer on TIOY. Maybe he will go to the premiere?

GAB IS A PRODUCER ON THE IDEA OF YOU???? WHAT