Weeks ago, we discussed all of the shenanigans going on with the production of Jane Got a Gun, which was supposed to be a dramatic, violent starring vehicle for Natalie Portman. Originally, Michael Fassbender was cast in a pivotal role, but he withdrew from production a week or so before filming began. Then the director, Lynne Ramsey, was pushed out (did she jump or was she pushed?), and Jude Law quickly followed (those walkouts happened within a day of each other). The role Fassy was supposed to play was offered to Bradley Cooper and Jake Gyllenhaal, both of whom refused. Ewan McGregor is now in the role, I guess, and Joel Edgerton is somewhere, and they’ve gotten a new director and his first command was “slow your roll, let’s shut down the production.”
What we should mention at this point is that Natalie Portman is not just the star of this mess, she is also the producer. This is a project she really believed in. She wanted to make this and she’s the only one holding this production together. And even then… people are still totally over it. According to Star Mag, Natalie is plucking everyone’s last nerve because she’s such a crappy producer:
Natalie Portman may seem like one of the sweetest stars in Hollywood, but those on the set of her new movie, Jane Got a Gun, say she’s a stuck-up control freak!
“She and her producing partners are literally ‘Harvarding’ this movie to death and second-guessing every decision they make,” reveals the source. “Nobody has any confidence in the project anymore. They’re all so miserable and tiptoeing around Natalie and her terrible temper.”
The root of Natalie’s ire could like in the movie’s lack of an A-list leading man.
“So many actors backed out of the movie, and she’s taking it out on everyone… first it was Michael Fassbender, then Jude Law and finally Bradley Cooper – and Natalie took that personally.”
And it seems Natalie is taking it out on everyone else.
“She is such a micromanager and has no qualms about dressing someone down and humiliating them… she’s made people cry and never apologizes. She tells everyone how to do their job: the lighting guy, the sound guy and the director. It’s crazy!”
[From Star Magazine, print edition]
I like the derogatory use of “Harvarding”. Because it seems like something that would happen with Natalie and her friends, like they are too intellectual to function in normal society, not to mention a film set where you actually have to make firm decisions. While I think it’s unfair to mock Natalie for a “terrible temper” (maybe she’s just bossy and men can’t handle it) or for being a “micromanager” (that’s called “producing”), I do think this is one of the most troubled productions we’ve seen in a while, and a lot of it is going to come down on Natalie because this is her baby.
Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.
I do think the ‘she’s a bitchy boss’ angle has more than its tinge of sexism to it; the big question is whether Natalie actually knows what she’s doing (has she produced anything before?), or just thinks she does.
ITA, I have a feeling the ‘she’s a bitch’ accusations are mostly because she had to act like the boss and some people didn’t like it / couldn’t handle it. That said, if she actually DIDN’T know what she was doing, that would for sure make things worse.
Maybe sexism, maybe not. If the movie comes out and it is crap we will know she was Harvarding (micromanaging with arrogance) which is not exclusive to women.
Yeah, I’ve got to contest the notion that “Harvarding” is an appropriate euphemism for micromanagement.
I went to Harvard, and trust me – the professors there don’t give a sh!t about the students. Micromanaging, ha.
The undergaduates are all taught by graduate students, and the grad students are left to sink or swim all by themselves. The faculty at Harvard are all out for themselves and themselves alone (they didn’t end up with tenure at Harvard by being nice).
God, I would have loved to have been micromanaged when I was there. Do you know what my disseration advisor actually said to me when I went to him for, you know, advice? He said, “Don’t bother me until it’s finished.” Finished. A 300-page dissertation. I had to write it with absolutely no support whatsoever except for fellow grad students reading chapters and giving me feedback. SO unless ‘Harvarding’ means ‘ignoring’ then it’s not an appropriate use of the word.
Besides, Natalie Portman was a stuck up you-know-what long before she ever got near the Ivy league.
Natalie Portman has a bad case of “I-know-better-than-you” and she sounds seriously clueless as a manager/producer. However I would state that the Oscar win probably has a lot more to do with her self-righteousness and micromanagement than her going to Harvard does. She sounds like she’s a drag to work for (as opposed to with) and people are responding to that. Good for them.
She’s been accused of this behavior before. Also, only child syndrome is strong with her. I bet she is taking this personally and looking down on all who stand between her and this movie..
Women bosses have a hard time catching a break. They did an experiment in my office. They showed the staff a film of two bosses in an identical situation, telling employees who were goofing off around the water fountain to get back to work, using the same exact phrases. The staff in my office said the man came off as authoritative, and the woman came off as a bitch. The women staff were actually more critical of the female boss than the men were. It was like they expected her to say “pretty please” or something.
That said, Portman has always impressed me as a nasty piece of work with a shitty attitude. Talent aside, I can’t stand her.
@cazzie A friend had a class with her. Apparently, she was a idiot and without one creative or original thought in her head. :/
Cazzie,
I went to Harvard also. I agree with your assessment of most Harvard professors, although that’s not the case for all of them.
Your thesis “adviser” may have actually done you a favor (an arrogant, selfish favor) by not giving you advice or managing your dissertation. My adviser was a hot mess and kept moving the target every week. I’m glad your peers were able to give you feedback. The grass is always greener.
Cazzie – You didn’t go to Harvard as an undergrad A-list movie star. I’m sure her Harvard experience was a lot different then the average student.
But I don’t think “Harvarding” was meant to describe professor student-relationships more the Ivy Leauge stereotype of being condescending, lording your degree over people’s heads, and setting up a intellectual class system where the validity of your idea depends on the degree on your wall.
It sounds like she is over thinking/over analyzing/over intellectualizing what is usually a more creative and free process and problems are stemming from with her over thinking rather than being able to quickly assess and make a decision. Also, based on this article I bet she thinks she is the smartest person in the room and could do anyone else’s job better then they can and that could make her unwilling to properly delegate and of course the resentment of the people working for her.
Cazzie — I agree with Lindsay. “Harvarding” has nothing to do with micromanaging — it’s all about attitude.
@Babalon, I’ve read Portman’s academic ‘work’ and at the very least, I can describe it as the work of a Freshman. Her article was riddled with inaccuracies, fallacies and straw man arguments. And it was on the same subject I did for my senior year. If I submitted her paper for my class, I would have definitely gotten a D/C because there is no challenge, no theoretical argument and full of inaccuracies. After reading her stuff, I have no idea how she managed to graduate from Harvard. Political Science is NOT her forte.
Even if I did not agree with her position, I would have constructed better arguments that she did. Actually, her paper was very ‘lazy’ as in she did not attempt to divulge more into the literature surrounding the issue.
I was thinking the same thing about sexism – especially in Hollywood. God forbid you have a women in a power/managerial role that has to make the big decisions.
That being said, I like “Harvarding” as an insult! That was actually funny.
yep, you ain’t lyin.. women are always “bitches” while men are respectable. GMAFB, it’s disgusting.
Maybe there’s an element of sexism, but male directors and producers like Joel Silver, James Cameron and Michael Bay are often called out for their primadonna (or “Hitlerish” ~Megan Fox) behaviour and I don’t recall anyone complaining about Kathryn Bigelow or Paula Wagner being “bitches”.
I’m going to go with The-Most-Super-Special-Snowflake-in-the-World is freaking out because her pet project is falling apart!
I agree sexism has something to do with it, it is just too prevalent to not be a factor. Even at the end of Sherry Lansing’s career she was dealing with it and she had a long list of accomplishments.
I noticed that I read something today about James Franco dropping out of his first directing gig of his own film because of “creative differences”…and he isn’t getting the same type of flack that Natalie’s film is getting.
Not saying Natalie is perfect, but I am going to withhold judgement on her skills until there is more than just rumors about her behavior.
Tapioca, Bigelow wasn’t accused of being a “bitch”, but of trying to be like a man (from Salon):
“Quentin Tarantino, who should know better, having just directed a piercingly original ironic study of war and blood lust, dubbed Bigelow the “Queen of Directors” when she took the DGA award. I prefer the “Transvestite of Directors.” Looks to me like she’s masquerading as the baddest boy on the block to win the respect of an industry still so hobbled by gender-specific tunnel vision that it has trouble admiring anything but filmmaking soaked in a reduced notion of masculinity.”
And The Hollywood Reporter accused Bigelow of not being ENOUGH of a boss:
(From indiewire):
“It’s this Hollywood Reporter piece entitled “The Unorthodox Relationship Between Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal”. The article written by Kim Masters (who is usually pretty good) says that Mark Boal was basically the co-director and that Kathryn Bigelow defered to him. It also talks about how she was model, and tells a story of date she rebuffed, and the fact perplexing fact that no one can figure out the relationship between Bigelow and Boal. Are they dating? Did they date? Like who the fuck cares?
No one talks about male directors this way. No one talks about them being models and the fact that they are pretty. Because being a male director is not about how you look. It’s about your work, and that’s what it should be for Kathryn Bigelow.”
@tapioca: But even when describing that type of behavior in men, people use a term for women – “prima donna,” which means “first lady.” Bitch, diva, prima donna – all synonyms, and whether applied to men or women they’re sexist terms and carry the implication that being a strong female is a negative. (This isn’t directed as a criticism of you–it’s a criticism of our society.)
Ain’t that the truth. I think that it might be difficult for some of the actors to view a female (“female” being a key component here) counterpart as a “boss”. I also wonder how much of that reaction is based on her looks. Sometimes it can be more difficult for an attractive female to be taken seriously..
I’m not sure it was wise for Natalie to have taken on such an ambitious project for her first “real” production role.
She was a producer on Hesher, but one of like 70 producers listed..haha. Otherwise it just looks like she’s mainly exec produced a few smaller films/tv shows.
I can understand being a bit of a “control freak” when you’re so invested in something and there’s so much pressure on her shoulders.
I am thinking the same thing. She’s the producer and it’s a very troubled project, so no, she’s not going to be a sweet, nice girl. I think people might not take her seriously because she’s young, female, a famous actress and looks like a “nice girl” and then they are surprised when she doesn’t just roll over. But who knows.
Whaaaa? She just seems like a c*nty b!tch, and has since she shaved her head onscreen for V For Vendetta and thought it was *ahmahhhzing and such a risk omg*.
Men can be bitches, too. The comment section on this board often deterriroates into whines about sexism but maybe she’s just ignorant and compensating with wretched attitude.
I agree with you. In many ways, women still face the challenge of having their authority taken seriously — in general, and in Hollywood specifically. But whether male or female, through their approach, some people earn loyalty and respect, whereas others simply demand it.
Somehow, it’s not at all hard for me to imagine Little Miss Perfect Natalie being a prat who can’t (a) deal when things don’t go exactly her way and (b) pull off being in a position of authority with grace.
Um, I don’t think anyone is “whining” about sexism, simply pointing out the way women are often perceived when holding a position of authority.
…and whatever your opinion of her——the c-word? Really??
What is it with Brits and the c-word. It doesn’t seem like such a horrible insult.
“But whether male or female, through their approach, some people earn loyalty and respect, whereas others simply demand it”
But people put far more faith in gossip about a females being gifted opportunity, instead of earning it. I think sexism makes it easier for some to believe this type of rumor.
Just look at Bret Easton Ellis’ tweets about Katheryn Bigelow. People think that Natalie’s a “bitch” because she shaved her head for a film, for goodness sakes! Natalie has a long career of working with very respectable professionals. Clearly she has some good work ethic and she knows about films or she wouldn’t be where she is today.
When NP and Julia Roberts did the movie Closer, they apparently got along famously and at the end of the shoot, JR gifted NP with a necklace that read “Little C*nt” (but the whole word). Lainey brings it up every once in a while. So maybe the C-word is appropriate here? 🙂
Thanks for saying that! As I was reading this all I could think was that this wouldn’t even be news if it was a man micromanaging this way.
Ummm she’s always been a bitch. She said that normal ppl don’t get that it was ok for Roman to rape a minor (back in the day) bc he is an artist remember?
….huh?
A year or two ago there was pressure on a country to deport Roman Polanski to the US. He was going to be in that country (can’t recall which one) for a film festival. Natalie co-signed a letter to the country’s government or the film festival saying that he should be allowed to come into their country as an artist for an event to promote the arts and should be immune from deportation. A lot of Hollywood big names signed it and it had a very “the artists are above normal people” vibe.
my thoughts were, “well an educated, attractive and accomplished woman is in charge we’ll hear about what a crazy bitch she is in 3, 2, 1”
My best friend went to Harvard with her, she is really really rude and considers herself way above everyone else.
So she needs to do a movie with Edward Norton, that would be an ego battle for the ages.
+1
Two of the biggest egos of all time.
Really? Details, please. I just watched Moonrise Kingdom…I’d forgotten how adorable he is. He was great in it.
@Esmom, among other deeds, word is Norton overtook production amd editing of American History X to include more screen time for himself (particularly shirtless screen time), to the extent that Tony Kaye asked to remove his name from the director credit of the film, or to at least use a pseudonym. Check the movie out- it’s a very decent film but the slo-mo half-nude shots of Norton get a little tiresome.
I LOVE AHX, such a great movie. There were a ton of slow motion shirtless pictures though, haha, it made me more aware of them when you pointed it out just now.
He is a super talented actor though so I’m not surprised because fame (and power) always goes to peoples heads.
@Mrs. Peacock, Bummer. I guess my impression of him as sort of cool and humble has been WAY off.
Can you imagine what it was like to be on the set of Your Highness with her and James Franco (who are basically the male and female versions of the same personality)?
I bet the pretentiousness and arrogance was so thick in the air on the set of that movie that you could cut it with a knife. A real tabloid journalist would track a plebian crew member from that movie down…
I was an extra on that film. They were both nightmares, especially James Franco. So far up his own ass he was practically looking out his mouth.
Not surprised, in the least.
I’m sorry, I just can’t with her high and mighty attitude; “I am so much smarter and more ethical and vegan than anybody else! But yeah, I’ll endorse companies that sell non-vegan products and test on animals. Also, I’ll belittle you without remorse with my superior intelligence!”
Hi Rocketmerry 🙂
YEah I’ve never been a fan of Portman, but I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt on this one. But she shouldn’t get used to it because it’s only this ONE time 😉
Hey Kitten! 😀 How’s it going?
I know, if the story is true then Natalie’s probably feeling the pressure of being a female boss (although, I had female bosses who managed to be tough but fair and beloved, so it can be done); but you know, I just… I can’t with her. I’m just a b*tch like that 😀
Totally understand, Rocketmerry. Portman’s always been a tough one for me to take.
Thank you!
Major side-eye to Natalie Portman, if she thinks Ewan McGregor isn’t A-list. He’s a wonderful actor. And just because someone is A-List doesn’t mean they’re classy or talented.
Ewan McGregor is a wonderful actor, but my impression is that he does a lot of films and is not as selective as he could be.
It says nowhere that she doesn’t think he’s A-list. The article speculates that she’s angry because so many actors dropped out, but they don’t know if she actually cares about that and even if she was angry because so many dropped out wouldn’t have to mean that she thinks Ewan is not as famous or good, but maybe just that she finds it difficult dealing with replacing several actors.
Ewans name doesnt put butts in Theatre seats. Period. Ok character actor but in no way a movie star. Certainly not a household name in over a decade.
Character actor? You’ve got to be kidding me.
You can say the same thing about George Clooney, Jude Law and Clive Owen. So George too is a B-list ‘character actor’ now?
Wow. Flabbergasted. All the butts I know would certainly plop themselves just about anywhere for Ewen.
Agree with Anna that noone would comment if she were a he. Then again, I’d be pretty grouchy if Fassbender dropped out too!
So what will happen with Natalie, Fassbender, and MacBeth? (Maybe he should put in a call to Eva Green or someone else, just in case.) To be fair, though, Joel Edgerton (who switched from the bad guy to Fassbender’s ex-lover role) has said things are fine.
Well, first of all the source is STAR magazine. Please, surely everybody knows that STAR is 99% made up BS of the highest order? The other 1% is what they steal from twitter or Z list celebs who call them to plant stories.
Natalie does seem rather up herself, but a female producer is always going to be called bitchy/bad tempered rather than decisive/opinionated.
Same goes for all men and women in the public eye. Look at Anna Wintour’s reputation? Men are always ‘brooding’ which can be seen as sexy and thrilling, yet women are ‘sullen’ or ‘moody’. A lot of times women perpetuate the same double standards, i see it a lot in comment sections and blogs.
Amen. I learned that the hard way. Not the GOOD hard way, either. Don’t much like Portman, and I DO think she’s pretty smug, but I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt on this one.
Speaking of learning the good hard way, isn’t E McG reputed to be carrying some massive heft where it counts? I hear it’s worth its considerable weight in gold. (How’s that for reverse sexism?)
Same here – she also looks young and “nice,” too, and people freak out if their misconceptions are proven wrong.
I learned the hard way, too, lahdidah, and it sucks. A work situation. Yuck. If this is what’s going on, then I feel for her, though I’ve never been much of a fan. She seems snotty, but who knows, maybe people would say the same about me if I were in her shoes.
Yes. See the pillow book for proof. Really any of his earlier films.
Warning! Woman in position of power! Misogynist media to battle stations!
Not a big fan of hers but this is story is just a touch too convenient thanks. 😉
she’s overrated in every way
Basically.
I’ll never forget her comparing eating meat to rape OR her “I know what it’s like to be black” comment after hearing Dr Cornell West speak.
I’m not a fan of hers but I won’t begrudge her for doing whatever needs to be done in order to get this film on track; there has been a lot of drama with this movie, she can’t afford for it to be a flop, so I will not shade her for doing her job.
I’ll change my tune once Macbeth comes out tho…
I don’t like her, but she didn’t compare eating meat to rape.
You’re right, she made a parallel between people who eat meat for the taste to a rapist doing it just because, same damn difference.
It was thoughtless either way.
This was the exact quote:
“I say that Foer’s ethical charge against animal eating is brave because not only is it unpopular, it has also been characterized as unmanly, inconsiderate, and juvenile. But he reminds us that being a man, and a human, takes more thought than just “This is tasty, and that’s why I do it.” He posits that consideration, as promoted by Michael Pollan in The Omnivore’s Dilemma, which has more to do with being polite to your tablemates than sticking to your own ideals, would be absurd if applied to any other belief (e.g., I don’t believe in rape, but if it’s what it takes to please my dinner hosts, then so be it).”
A parenthetical ‘eg’ is a comparison. EG, examplae gratia, for the sake of an example…in other words, what writers use to draw a parallel example of a scenario similar or comparable to the one they are discussing.
I doubt Portman got into Harvard because of her brains, but if she didn’t pick that up in an undergraduate writing class, she’s a bigger idiot than I had thought.
The last time I thought she was awesome was in The Professional. I think she was 12 or something, no? But I still think at least some of this is the weight of the old boy network pushing her down to the proper depths where women are *supposed* to be. Which is somewhere within tongue range of their genitals. Forgive the vulgarity. I’m just vulgar.
I’m sure if Natalie was a man none of this would come out, we still live in a world where women in charge are considered bitches. I work in a department with 2 women bosses who are very nice and fair, but any time they have to lay down the law everyone starts calling them names, when before when we had male bosses people would be jumping to attention to please them. Sad world we live in.
This chick. In college, we had a friend who attended high school with her and he related how she brought BODYGUARDS to prom, and had them ‘deal’ with a boy who asked her to dance. wtf. She looks like she’s back on the HWood diet, so she’s clearly HANGRY all the time. Her son looks sad all the time too, tho I know that being papped outside isn’t always an indicator of how a kiddo’s personality is.
Yes, let’s not start judging a baby just because it doesn’t smile enough to please strangers.
I’m not judging her baby at all. Mine can be sullen outside as well, I was only mentioning it because of her known control freak history. S’all.
I actually don’t blame her for bringing bodyguards. She became world famous while she was still in high school due to Star Wars and had lots of crazy fans. Remember Jodie Foster got stalked and almost killed in college?
I’m sure the whole story is the guy asking her to dance was being super pushy or over eager like “omg, you’re natalie portman. Please dance with me it’ll be the greatest moment in my life. NO, please don’t say no. Please!”
Eh, I don’t know. It’s prom. Not exactly being part of the experience if you bring bodyguards with you. I didn’t go to prom, myself. I just think she’s kind of always been aloof,controlling, etc. Tho I do agree she is likely just trying to be the boss, not bossy, in this scenario.
@mkarywood: sure, having bodyguards at the prom isn’t the real prom experience? You know what is? Getting killed by a crazy fan. Not just for her, but for everybody at the prom. How dare she ruin the prom for everybody by valuing her safety, what a b***, right?!
Dunno, I never called her anything. I think the whole concept of prom is kind of crappy as it is. I also think it’s weird that we have a society where people would require bodyguards. I’m not sitting here seething about it, tho everyone’s incendiary reaction is definitely amusing.
Besides Star Wars she was also in “The Professional” at a very young age and it brought on lots of stalkers. Apparently she kept getting weird, creepy mail while she was a teenager.
Who cares that she brought bodyguards to a prom – lots of teen stars have bodyguards.
Right. There was the whole “Countdown to Legality” website when she was, what, 15? It was gross and I’m sure she had her share of creepers, so I actually don’t begrudge her bringing some muscle along.
Yeah, I have refrained from bringing up how gross I think it is for parents to agree to a child being in a movie like that. Again, this is a story related to me 15 years ago and I was commenting in the context of the article. I don’t know her personally, but I will remain steadfast on thinking it’s weird to bother to go to something like prom with bodyguards.
She has yet to prove herself as a producer. I am sure people wouldn’t complain about being bossed around or ill treated by a respectable female producer.
I have personally never like Natalie Portman. She acts like she is special because she went to college…like seriously? Who hasn’t been?
She should hire Brad Pitt, I think he is a guy who would probably be easy to work with.
Maybe she did not have 20 million dollars to spend on his golden ass. I think Pitt only takes a pay-cut when it’s a true passion project. Besides, he is a great producer himself: I bet he could easily produce this movie and give Natalie some nondescript producer cred and obviously a job as the leading actress.
Her life would have been much easier, but he must have been indifferent to the script. I am sure his team reads every script Hollywood has to offer.
Oh come on, Ewan McGregor IS an A list and a way better one than Bradley Cooper. bha.
Agree with both points.
Agreed. He’s a better actor than Bradley and Jake. And his turn at being the next big thing came a while back — but I can’t think of any role that Fassbender could do that he can’t. It’s hardly like the guy has never been involved in any successful major films….
Ewan Mc Gregor is major upgrade to Bradley Cooper, in talent and looks. If I was a casting director and had to choose between the two, Ewan would win hands down.
I believe all of that. I’m willing to believe anything bad about her because she “Do you know who I am”ed my best friend at a bar at Harvard. (They were there at the same time.) I can’t stand anybody that pulls that card.
Oh yuck. I can’t stand that either.
I SO want someone to pull that card on me, just so I could look them square in eye and say, “yes”.
Then their bodyguards can beat me up.
I would have to add “yes….. and I don’t care”
You think she expects the actors to work, be prepared, stay in budget and not whine and kid around for a change? What a horrible person..
Eh … who knows. Male control freaks are called “dedicated to attention to detail” and “committed to the process”. Women be bitches no matter what.
My cousin went to Harvard with her. When I asked about it, he said she was very stuck up, not interested in meeting or getting to know anyone, and would only associate with people she deemed worthy. Back then, she certainly wasn’t a sweetheart, so I can’t imagine her being any different now. I doubt this has much to do with sexism and more to do with her attitude towards other people, especially those she deems “lesser.”
Seriously…why is it that automatically this must be a case of the misogynist media picking on a poor girl just trying to do the very bestest job she can possibly do? *rolls eyes*
Given what we know of Portman-eating meat is rape, supporting Polanski, generally being holier than thou and characterized time and time again by those who have known her or worked with her as being a stuck up, frosty, control freak and hypocrite…can this not just be a case of her just being a bitch?
Not everything needs to be viewed with such self righteous pearl clutching and over political correctness. Couching everything as some sort of sexist/racist/whateverist attack lessens those who genuinely experience those sorts of issues. Really all this is to me is a case of a spoiled brat not getting their way and throwing a tantrum so everyone knows how important they are.
Agreed. If she were working in some Caveman Industry, I would buy sexism as a legit argument. This is Hollywood…industries don’t get more liberal. So the sexism out for her just looks like a bandwagon.
Ewan McGregor already talked about what a pain in the ass he thought she was on the set of SW…so its no surprise if they are having personality conflicts. I wouldn’t want to be micromanaged by some narcissistic twat who can’t even act, myself.
“If she were working in some Caveman Industry, I would buy sexism as a legit argument. This is Hollywood…industries don’t get more liberal.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME????
Hollywood is run by money, which is run by MEN. How many films are out right now with females carrying the film? How many female directed movies are in theaters right now? Do you know the ratio of female to male writers on TV shows made recently? Or film? Or projects that are directed by women? It is horrifically small. I also encourage you to look into Geena Davis’ organization “See Jane”.
http://www.seejane.org/
Women do not get the opportunities in Hollywood that men do.
FYI- everyone should go see the Melissa McCarthy/Sandra Bullock film coming out soon, because if it doesn’t do well, we won’t get another one.
http://blogs.indiewire.com/womenandhollywood/dga_stats_on_directing_tv_show_a_white_male_dominated_world
“Of the 2,600 episodes analyzed of scripted series for the 2010-2011 season (which comprise of over 170 series), white males directed 77% of all the shows. White women directed 11% and women of color only 1%. The numbers women were the same from the previous season.
Breaking it down a bit further, white men directed 80% of all one hour shows and 74% of half hour series.”
From Lainey today:
“To add to that, I received a very thoughtful email from a longtime reader called Nell yesterday who attended “A Conversation with Paul Feig” in New York the other day. Feig directed The Heat and he talked about how the film came together, and what scenes were scripted and which ones showcased McCarthy’s excellent improv instincts.
More importantly though, he also said that since The Heat is the ONLY big studio picture featuring two female leads this summer, there likely won’t be another one if it doesn’t do well at the box office. That’s how the industry is set up right now. Adam Sandler can send out as much bullsh-t as he wants, over and over and over again, but women only get one chance. Just…maybe some incentive – if you needed more – to go see The Heat? (Thanks Nell!)”
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!
And there has to be some good reason for the mass exodus from this production.
Sorry for overcommenting…I just realized I had to say this. The sexism was the way the studio smeared Lynne Ramsey by initially saying that she just didn’t show up for work with no rhyme or reason and out of the blue.
Ramsey had given notice, and her departure from the project was the result of a longstanding dispute regarding funding and directorial control. It was the studio’s fault, and, rightly, it was the start of all the grief they got with the production (Jude Law followed Ramsey out on principle, which kicked off the male lead dramas). So, she is probably a victim here.
Natalie, with her interesting views on rape, who last played a strong female character when she was in high school…and can go several films before playing a woman who is just plain not a weak stereotype from the dark ages, who constantly trashes other women in and out of the industry, and who takes visible career highs and an opportunity to publically thank her boyfriend for knocking her up, should not be sheltered under the aegis of feminism.
Her jacket? Sweater? Is soooo ugly.
I am a Natalie fan. They don’t say what the movie is supposed to be. :(.
But I don’t buy that she is any worse than the other producers trying to pull a movie together.
Agreed. The fact that she’s kept the Movie together is an achievement in itself.
As for Bradley Cooper, he had to pull out because of scheduling conflicts with his David Russell movie also this comes from Star magazine so keep that in mind.
I hope it’s a success for her in the end. Their are too few women making movies IMO.
This is something we’ve heard for yrs, right? that she is a b$*#( and has a terrible temper
Every time i see her in an interview – I can just sense that she is high strung and bat-sh!t crazy
She is adorable, though.
Ugh I dislike her, but I feel so bad her movie is just a crap production.
Maybe this is because NP has always been high, if not the top, of the list of actresses who get under my skin, but I disagree about the sexism thing. If a woman who didn’t have clear personality problems were producing, and people called her a horrible boss, that would be different…but with Natalie Portman? It’s no more of a shock to me that people don’t like her than it would be if people didn’t like James Franco/any male counterpart to the Portman Ego producing a movie.
I had a female boss with a high horse, once. I hated her…not because she was female, but because the high-and-mighty attitude really does make you a crap manager. It makes you fly off the handle and threaten to fire/take money out of the paychecks of everyone in the room over the slightest mistakes (it happened), it makes you play favorites with employees who stroke/don’t threaten your ego-even if they are lazy morons (it happened), and it makes you act personally offended by an employee who can actually function at his or her job without you standing at their back 24/7 telling them what to do (it happened…I think the word is ‘micromanage’). From the way Natalie has always looked down her nose at others-in and out of the Industry-she is probably that boss on steroids.
I always felt there was something wrong when the dancer, who did most of the ballet sequences in the Natalie Portman film, claimed she wasn’t getting credit for her performances. Natalie was the “star” and the only one whose role was acknowledged in the film. Something was off with that. Is Natalie a diva?
I think the reason that whole thing made me mad is when people defended Portman by saying she won it for her acting…okay. That’s bull. The Oscars are about more than acting. They are a very political award as well. Not every person who wins won it for their acting.
What people don’t realize is that people campaign for the award. And that’s exactly how Natalie’s team did it. They DID make it sound like Natalie was some prodigy dancer and that she danced so many scenes (when in reality the majority of those scenes were close headshots). And if it was possible for them to paste Natalie’s face on all those ballerinas in that one scene, would it not be possible for them to do it to her stand-in??? There was so much drama and bs around that crappy movie black swan. It was a dumb movie.
They did make it sound like she learned what it takes to be a prima ballerina IN A YEAR which immeasurably helped her campaign. They went above and beyond to make her sound like a prodigy and they did not properly credit her stand in. She talked about it endlessly and would rarely mention her stand-in, but consistently mentioned her preparation.
That’s what annoyed people. It’s how she presented the narrative. So the fact that she won it for her acting alone is bs. She won it because of how she represented herself throughout the campaign as some sort of talented actor, gifted dancer, happy and in love, and a wonderful soon to be mother. A flawless campaign on her part.
Since when has Natalie had a reputation as “one of the sweetest actors in Hollwood”? You can tell by looking at her that that isn’t accurate.
My thoughts exactly.
On both counts. 🙂
She is so self-congratulatory, arrogant and overbearing. I do not find her even remotely appealing. She was magnificent in Closer… and that was it.
Black Swan? Yeah, I liked it. But I felt she was too self-conscious to give an ‘Oscar-y’ performance in that one as usual. She is always extremely off-putting and condescending.
Ewan McGregor has been tweeting from production and, while I’m sure he’d never tweet anything demeaning or angry about his co-stars/directors/producers, he seems to have wrapped production and it sounds like it went fine. He and Aaron Paul were trading tweets about New Mexico– it was fun to follow.
It is true that women in management positions have a harder time, and their actions are viewed as bitchy rather than authoritative. That said, I’ve not had any decent bosses, male or female, that would publicly humiliate employees or reduce them to tears.
If she’s making people cry, she’s a bitch, not a good manager.
I read the blurb about the film. The story seems lame.
How do we know it’s actually her and not a stunt double?
A good producer trusts the people he/she hires and let them do what they do, to at least certain point. I could not see any producer hiring for example Quentin Tarantino and then trying to micromanage him to do something completely else. That’s just perfects script to disaster..
Let alone that Natalie, who is not professional sound/lighting person, would be telling them how to do their work? Even I would walk out of that BS.
I just really don’t like her as an actress. As a big fan of nerd films, I wish she wasn’t in almost every damned one of them–she’s very stilted and robotic in most and it just ruins it for me. Of course, nothing much could have helped the Star Wars prequels, so I don’t really blame her for those. Even Ewan and Samuel couldn’t save those from disaster.
But yeah, women do get labeled as bitches and difficult if they have a backbone in any business, not just show business.
I liked her in Thor. I felt like it was one of the few roles I found her absolutely charming and funny.
ditto! +1
I don’t know anything about her or her personality but from my experience, people would take unbelievable crap from male bosses and you would not even hear about it, unless you witness it, but if a female would dare to act like a boss, they would trash that person and won’t stop complaining, so, I tend to doubt such “complaints”.
Plus the verb of Harvard used, sounds like someone is a bit self-conscience and feels threatened by how smart she is.
Whoever complaint sounds like a lousy team-player.
Lets not forget that the most damaging decision to leave which in effect caused all the other future problems was from the Director – a woman.
When she left the blame was put on the OTHER producer, a man whilst little Portman mysteriously disappeared for a few weeks from the media – he was left dealing with the fallout
Ide love to chalk this one up to sexism but she has always had that stench of my way is the only way – veganism, education etc etc
I think there isn’t as much sexism out there as Portman thinks. First, she’s in an industry where women basically market their bodies and looks in general so it shouldn’t be surprising. In other industries women are accepted in positions of authority and it’s all about how you present yourself.
I think Portman isn’t letting people do the jobs they’re there for. She might be telling people how to do their jobs, might be embarrassing people by chastising them in front of everyone and possibly being endlessly critical.
She over intellectualizes a lot and I think she takes too much on herself and might even think she knows more than a lot of trained professionals. So they get sick of it and tell the press.
“I think there isn’t as much sexism out there as Portman thinks”
I work in the entertainment industry, and I completely, completely disagree. If I could share the details of what I know…but I can’t. But it is very sad. That that for what you will.
I don’t see why anyone should be surprised by this. If anything, I was surprised when I read “Natalie may seem one of the sweetest stars…”
What?
She doesn’t look “sweet” at all.
And while I don’t necessary consider “sweetness” a top priority, I just don’t like her. Never did. (I did try to, though.)
Admittedly, maybe I am slightly influenced by what I KNOW (like, as a fact) about her behaviour on the set – read about what she did to Terence Stamp – as well as off (she seems to be surprisingly snobby, according to a reporter who is a good friend of mine – and a highly intellectual man).
But at least I am not going by appearances alone.
Not that her appearance is exactly “sweet”. There is am aura of coldness to her that I don’t like.
And this is a highly educated, card-carrying vegetarian speaking! 🙂
(Just so there is no misunderstanding: this refers to the people who don’t like her simply because she went to Harvard and/or claims to be a vegetarian.)
“She doesn’t look “sweet” at all.”
“Not that her appearance is exactly “sweet”. There is am aura of coldness to her that I don’t like.”
It seems like you are basing your opinion largely on what she looks like. Imagine if everyone thought Michael Shannon was a psycho because he has cold eyes! Just because someone has “bitch face” doesn’t mean they are a bitch. Just because someone has a “sweet” face doesn’t mean they are!
I never understood how she considers herself a child star. She only had one role and its was Leon. Other then that she only did small time roles until she hit big with Star Wars.
If you ask me about 90s child stars, then I would answer Maculay Culkin, Christina Ricci, Elijah Wood, Boy Meets World cast, JTT,etc.
Natalie was never as popular as them. Now she is very famous but still. How was she a child star?
I thought ‘Harvarding the movie’ had to do with Harvey Weinstein, like Natalie was a big mouth egotistical aggressive know it all. lol
Apparently, that dude who Natalie is married to, also has a repuation for being an total jerk.
I know someone who met him many years back. Before Black Swan and of course Natalie. He isn’t nice and he goes after girls with lots of money. He was also previously engaged to another girl before Isabel Bolyston or whoever that girl was that got dumped for Natalie.
Whatever, he is a loser who is balding, also looks like a pedophile and mooches off his famous wife. Natalie really slummed for a husband I gotta say. He is a nobody. He looks like the loser version for Gael Garcia Bernal or whatever.
Is it just me or does she have incredibly short arms- like midget arms. It’s bizarre, she really looks rather deformed to me. I can’t help noticing her short short arms…probably doesn’t bother the guys though.
She does have short arms but she’s not very tall in person either. She’s shorter than me and I’m not very tall at 5’4″.
She has a history of being difficult and having a holier-than-thou attitude. Alan Dershowitz was her mentor at Harvard and he’s one of the most insufferable people on earth. The only thing consistent about this production is Natalie Portman. Maybe EVERYBODY left because she’s the problem? It’s not sexist, it’s just the logical conclusion.
That’s what I was thinking. 3 people walked out on this project. And the constant in each equation was NP.
A good producer is a kind of artist. They have to deal with the temperaments of others. In Hollywood esp you have to have an innate understanding of what keeps a production afloat.
There’s no sexism here. Megan Ellison is a powerful film producer, a woman, and younger than Natalie by several years. Natalie just sucks at producing and, if you ask me, acting.
PS. I’m also a vegetarian on the brink of veganism after seeing Farm to Fridge. Natalie sucks at advocating for vegetarians. I don’ tknow anyone that agrees with Natalie’s stupid essays for Huffpo.
If this was a man, this would be a non-issue.
NP has long struck me as a stuck-up, holier-than-thou brat who is as clueless as Gwyneth Paltrow when it comes to anything that occurs outside of her rarefied, born-rich, pampered circle.
She wasn’t always such a snot, though…when she was in her early to mid-teens, she seemed like a nice, level-headed girl. But then she started believing her own press, as well as being a know-it-all because she went to Harvard. It’s gotten even worse now that she’s won an (undeserved, IMO) Oscar and had a baby. Now she’s a know-it-all about acting and motherhood as well, and somewhere along the way, she decided she knew everything about producing, too.
I don’t think she’s that talented, nor is she all that intelligent, despite her vaunted education. Every time she opens her mouth she ends up choking on her foot. And people LEAP to defend her and accuse anyone who criticizes her of “jealousy.”
The crew and fellow cast members said the same thing about Barbra Streisand when she produced and/or directed, but they the word used was ‘perfectionist’ instead of b*tch, they didn’t like it but they respected Barbra because she knew what she was talking about and delivered the goods. It remains to be seen if Natalie is ‘all fur coat and no underwear’ as my grand mother would say.
I find it very easy to believe this exodus from her production has NOTHING to do with sexism and everything to do with Ms. Portmans insufferable personality. Her FARCE at promoting her self as an overnight ballerina was the most insulting LIE I have ever witnessed. My mother was a ballerina and I was a ballerina and it took many many years of blood, sweat and tears to do pointe to the point of LITERALLY bleeding from your feet for the love of your art. This BEECH not only unashamedly self promotd a LIE but also denied due credit to the REAL dancer of the film. What this exemplifys is not only a lack of integrity but a smallness of character, lack of generosity and lack of graciouness. She is so grasping for her ego to be stroked she couldnt even let the dancer have one small moment in the sun? Really? Are you THAT insecure. She says Roman Polanski was entitled to live the way he did because “he’s an artist.”
Well, the REAL dancer of the Black Swan was an artist too Natalie. What about her?
As far as “Harvarding”…..much to my disappointment….I am very sorry to say….I have never met a Harvard grad that WASNT an A**hole.
I really find the comments on here that agree with Star magazine, a terrible rag full of lies, to be funny. Okay, hate on Natalie Portman but don’t believe things about her coming from this rag.
Natalie is ONE of several producers and she is the star of this movie. I seriously doubt she has the time to “boss people around” and that’s not at all what producers do. But, whatever. Believe what you want. If it wasn’t for Natalie this movie would have ground to a halt when the director didn’t show up on the first day; then one actor left because he only joined because of that director; then Cooper had to drop out because of a conflict (because of bad weather where he was filming his movie). Natalie and the other producers found another director in only a few days and never shut down the production and everybody kept getting their paychecks. I have a feeling they are very happy and are not complaining about Natalie Portman.
The lack of an A-list leading man?
What a tasteless and dumb comment!!! I like Michael Fassbender a lot, but while Ewan McGregor is enough for me to check out a movie he is in, I find Bradley Cooper’s success as an actor intriguing and doubtful, and Jude Law much more uninteresting and boring than Ewan, who I love since the Pillow Book.
I recall pics of Fassy filming a movie (kissing scenes on a balconey w/Portman). Was that a different film?
That was a Malick film
Thank you, Rialto!
“Nobody has any confidence in the project anymore. They’re all so miserable and tiptoeing around Natalie and her terrible temper.”
“She is such a micromanager and has no qualms about dressing someone down and humiliating them… she’s made people cry and never apologizes.
These quotes are saying she is directly abusing people. Why are people bringing sexism into this? Abuse is abuse. I haven’t heard of a male director dishing out this kind of abuse apart from the I love Huckabees
director.
Exactly.
When word like this starts coming from crew, it’s usually legit. The crew know as all top down happenings affect them daily. If the production were a healthy one this kind of stuff would not be coming out, & unless Smoking Gun gets their hands on proof, I don’t think any of this stuff is coming from Lynne Ramsay.
Natalie’s a pretty face and she can seem “sweet” at first glace but keep watching. What is mistaken as “sweet” or “shy” is actually a really dismissive coldness. Girl can give a good dirty look.
+1 to both comments.
Everyone is quick to link this to gender, but it has nothing to do with it. Natalie is not being “picked on” as a woman in the industry – she is a arrogant, nasty piece of work, and people are calling her out on it.
I really dislike that people think that the mean old men in show business are misogynistic sexists. Isn’t it as equally as misandric and sexist to assume that about men?
True.
And, add to that, I am tired of the feminist mindset that you can never condemn a woman’s behavior; that its only okay to call out men on their bad behavior. There are a lot of bad, even evil, women out there.
MorganM–THAT is exactly what I find obnoxious about the argument, as it applies here. It is chauvinism to say that a woman can’t manage because she’ll be thinking of her kids the whole time. It is likewise chauvinism to say that a female manager who behaves like that should get the kid gloves on account of her womanhood.
My boss graduated from Harvard, and yeah, this is the perfect description of what’s wrong w his management style!!
So odd, a friend of mine forwarded this to me because he knew that I had worked on the film in question.
It is a complete fabrication I guess to get people to read the Star, go figure.
Anyway, I was always a fan of Natalie Portman and one of the firs things I Was told when I arrived on set was how great, congenial and hospitable the cast was. I have seen my fair share of hostility on set and for a production that was this difficult due to the known issues on top of extraordinarily hot temperatures and very long hours, I was amazed at how great EVERYONE on the ENTIRE cast was.
Never heard that from anyone else before, Joe Smith confirms above. Maybe there was an episode or two-she does hava a French husband and a toddler-I feel her pain.
I think her husband seems like he could be mean to her. Like he looks like a douche and apparently someone ekse wrote that he uses girls who have conntections and money. I never see him with the child. Only Natalie seems to be the one who takes care of him.
I have a feeling their marriage is gonna end soon. Apparently, he was jealous that Natalie would be working with all these great looking guys on Jane Got a Gun and he was interfering with it.
She seems to do everything for that guy. Moving to LA for him, bribing his way through a YSL contract, giving him all this exposure he would have never gotten without her. Now that he got his Ballet gig , he will leave her.
Wait, wait. Fassy didn’t leave the production because of Natalie Portman! He left because shooting was late and it clashed with X-Men Days of Future Past. His role was taken by Edgerton, who had been originally cast as the villain. The director IMHO left because production wanted to strangle her artistic freedom. Jude Law had been cast as the villain, he left because he was only making it to work with Lynne Ramsay. Bradley Cooper was cast, but he had scheduling conflicts too, so Ewan McGregor arrived. Pretty complicated.
I’m not sure I’m buying the “Natalie is bossy” story…it reeks of sexism. Let’s see how the film ends up to be, but the troubles with the male actors (not leading man, that was immediately replaced) don’t have anything to do with her IMHO
Nice nose job Natalie.
Are we to deduce the exodus of the male stars as being due to Natalie’s work ethos? It would be hard not to.
First of all–I realize this is from Star. I realize that Star has limited credibility. The rest of my post follows an ‘if it were so’ premise…
Second–I have a bone to pick with the whole sexism thing. I have managed at my job–yeah, you do have to do a lot to work up a level of respect comparable to a man’s. You don’t get that respect by, ‘has no qualms about dressing someone down and humiliating them… she’s made people cry and never apologizes. She tells everyone how to do their job: the lighting guy, the sound guy and the director. It’s crazy!’ Not only will it not give you respect, it is unprofessional, and abusive. Creating a shitty work environment is not how management works. And, while I have no patience for people who undercut me because I am a woman…I also have no patience for unprofessional bratty women in the workplace, either. I mean, if that is how a woman manages her team in the real world (not the ‘we kiss stars’ asses for money’ world that is the showbiz), she isn’t exactly the victim of anything when people don’t respect her. Not even if they crack jokes about her cycle.
To say nothing of that fact that Portman wouldn’t even be famous, except for being a thin woman who could bare her midriff for objectification in a shitty movie. Don’t believe me? What’s new in Christensen’s career? It’s kind of insulting to say that sexism is keeping Portman down…when it is what lifted her up in the first place.
Third–Frankly, I found the whole ‘Natalie as a producer’ thing as a continuation of the havoc Aranovsky caused when he blew air into her already-inflated ego by letting her think that is is ‘more than a muse, and part of the process’, or whatever. She first fancied herself a scriptwriter, joined herself to a Harvard grad (because it takes two Ivy League degrees to churn out raunchy-comedy scripts, apparently). Not one studio was willing to pick it up–and considering that she and Anne Hathaway co-staring in a raunch-com together would have put a reliable number of male butts in seats, that likely means the script was majorly Harvarded. That itself was kind of embarrassing…because she talked her plans up in the media before finding out how the eggs hatched. Now, she is playing at producer, for a project that should have been taken out back and shot by the studio by this point. Maybe she should just try to be an actress who can do more than ugly cries and constipated faces.
All I am saying, is she has the self-importance to lend plausibility to the stories of her behaving in an intolerable, unprofessional manner that can simply not be defended by rolling eyes and saying ‘oh, men.’
Yes! ^^^THIS^^^ Every. Single. Word.
+1
+3
Being a woman does not automatically make you a victim, if she’s acting like a bitch then that’s how it is. If you don’t have to tolerate abuse why would you stay in an abusive work environment?
I feel bad for her Star Wars co-star Hayden Christenen. I think both he and Natalie are talented actors but atleast Hayden seems really nice, despite not really having much a career anymore. Natalie just seems bratty, rude, egostical.
I think that the Oscar just made her even worse. I know she went to Harvard but I don’t think thats why she think she is better then everyone in Hollywood. Its because she gets told she is pretty, talented, great so many times over the years that it went to her head.
Also, the fact that her creepy ballerina K Fed husband also left his long-time girlfreind for Natalie, makes her feel like she is ‘special’ or something. How terrible.
Whatever, I find him so ugly and he seems like a pathetic loser who is seeking fame, so she must have very low standared if she is going after guys like that.
Hayden should get another chance. He can act; his performance in “Awake” was great, and despite the fact that “Jumper” was a crappy flick, it didn’t suck from his acting. He performed well in smaller roles before SW. He just gets a rep as a bad actor because he sucked in SW. Jake Lloyd wasn’t even a bad actor–he did a good job in Jingle All the Way…it’s just that his acting niche was a cute kid star for cutesy films, and Lucas stupidly made a kid with his niche Anakin freaking Skywalker.
He actually tried in SW to boot. He just crumpled because he never tested his metal as even supporting cast on a big-budget film before, and he was suddenly leading in SW. It made him try too hard and overact (btw, I hate the ‘George Lucas is a crap director’ and ‘the script sucks’ arguments as an excuse for the acting troubles in the prequels. I roll my eyes every time I hear it. It’s not that the statements aren’t true, but August, McDiarmid, McGregor, Niesson, Jackson, and Knightely weren’t working with anything else. They managed not to suck. I view actors in movies as the opposite of goalkeepers in soccer…if the movie is well, the actors get all the credit; if the actors flop, their fans will start talking about the directors and the scriptwriters).
Portman, on the other hand, sucked because she was clearly not even trying. Her performance had the air of ‘I first read the script five minutes before the take. Please, let this take be a wrap, because I want to take a nap.’ It made her the one and only actress I have ever seen cause an entire theater to start laughing (the scene where she just popped up and started issuing orders after being knocked out in AOTC), then make an entire theater laugh again in a reprisal (the ‘Anakin, you’re breaking my heart!’ ugly cry). She actually had experience with big-studio films, and she didn’t seem to care that an 8 year old outacted her (to say nothing of the stories she herself tells about crying between takes on the set of TPM from self-pity…after Lucas generously paid to have one of her friends flown to England so she could have a companion). It is patently unfair that she could come back from being that lazy, and Christensen cannot come back from trying to hard, simply because Natalie had the advantage of being a woman who could sexualize herself for the geeks.
That’s honestly why she grates on my nerves more than anyone else in Hollywood–she is so UNJUSTIFIABLY famous, and yet, she is haughty, smug, and clearly lacks the self-awareness to know how she got anywhere.
@ Samantha.
I agree with you. Hayden is talented. It makes me sad that he cannot make a comeback. Why is it so hard for him?
He is talented, and if you ask me, he is also handsome looking. Plenty of bad actors get by their looks. Hayden is both talented and handsome so I don’t get why he is not landing roles.
This is off topic but I don’t get how Natalie Portman’s husband, who is not even a celeb, is able to land pefume deals, get all this expsoure when he is not even in employed Hollywood. He is pretty dang ugly for a high fashion brand. But I guess being married to Natalie Portman has its perks.
This story about her being rude and bossy seems accurate.
One thing about her that bothered me was when she said acting was ‘just a hobby’ and that you don’t need a brain to learn how to act. I found it offensive for those who try so hard to make it in the Hollywood industry and they don’t make it and their dreams are crushed.
She is talented, but she will never end up on the platform like Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Tom Cruise ,Johnny Depp, Charlize Theron,etc are on. Something about her is very unlikeable. Despite being talented.
I recently had the pleasure to witness an Oxford grad be out witted by my former supervisor (said boss was the most delusional, tackiest, low class woman I ever met – she thought everyone was jealous of her even though she was obese and suffered from dwarfism). Hope an Oxford degree pays off for her someday since the woman that managed to get her fired graduated with a worthless hick degree from KState. –