'Game of Thrones' Star Rants About Celebrity Culture; Calls Fame 'Superficial' & 'Dehumanizing' in Speech [VIDEO]
Game of Thrones star Jack Gleeson has launched a full-blown attack on celebrity culture.
Gleeson, who plays the evil brat King Joffrey on Game of Thrones, went on a rant about fame during a speech at Oxford University recently.
"Since the show has aired, I've been given an insider look into and ever-pervasive and yet often mysterious aspect of society, namely, our culture of celebrity," he explained. The star added that his public image has become widely known around the world and through the Internet and noted that he wasn't ready for everything that came with being famous.
Gleeson went on to admit his own personal distaste at how self-involved he had become through his newfound fame, criticizing the "superficial elevation and commodification" of becoming a celebrity so quickly.
The 21-year-old actor then railed against the culture of fame in terms of the way celebrities are turned into images and products through endorsement deals.
"What's ironic is that you see celebrity endorsing things like, you know, musical tampons and appearing in advertisements for lavender scented teeth whitener or something," he said. "Wielding goods whose sell-by dates [will] ironically, probably, outlast theirs. Having one's image, and effectively life, democratized, dehumanizes and sometimes objectifies it into an entertainment product."
With how easily the culture dehumanizes such celebrities, Gleeson concluded that those have been through it were left with only "skin and bones" in the end.
Gleeson has previously said that he will quit acting after Game of Thrones concludes. The actor is currently a student at Trinity College, Dublin, studying philosophy and theology.
Game of Thrones season 4 premieres Sunday, April 6 at 8 p.m. on HBO.
