Vin Diesel: Facebook 'Owes Me Billions of Dollars' Because of My Popularity [VIDEO]
Vin Diesel has announced that Facebook owes him a billion dollars because of his popularity.
Diesel, the star of Fast & Furious 6, told Entertainment Weekly that he deserved the billions because his popularity was a boon for the site. He amassed 40 million fans.
"Facebook really owes me billions of dollars," he joked. "But whatever."
Diesel joined the social media site in 2009 and began interacting with fans. At the time, he was only second to President Barack Obama but soon overtook him in popularity. He attributed this to his fan interaction.
"So, when I started talking to the fans, I became the No. 1 page in the world. Over Coca-Cola, over huge companies. And it was only because I said: 'Hi, guys, I love you," he said.
Diesel said that his efforts at outreach sparked a trend. He felt that fans responded in kind to celebrities who used their platform. He also declared that Hollywood would be different today if the stars of yesterday had made greater use of their profiles.
"Imagine, if you were able to Facebook Elvis , and talk to him, and hear from him without the Hollywood of it all. That was the ' Fast & Furious' experience," he said.
Diesel also claimed that the powers that be wanted him to explain his pull with its users. He was once the number one fan page. Facebook could not understand what he was doing that was so different than everyone else. Diesel explained that he just made himself accessible. He wrote all the posts himself.
"My audience knows me so well on the page that if my producing partner's in the room when I post, they'll know somebody was around me," he said.
Diesel said that his fans were sophisticated and felt he had an extra layer of protection because of them. He even referred to them as angels. Diesel believed that was a force in the universe which was safeguarding him.He gave an analogy to make his point.
"If I'm doing a photo shoot with a leopard, and the leopard gets loose, and nobody got eaten, you kind of go: There must be something to that energy everyone has," he said.
