http://wikianonbc.tumblr.com/post/142660799499/there-actually-is-one-instance-where-bc-was-rude
Quelle surprise. Benedict goes around with his family, gets more jobs, and generally goes about his life without caring about what the Sour Grapes Brigade say. SGB proceeds to start calling him an asshole and vilifying him in any way they can. Some fans, huh?
I don’t know Benedict. I don’t know if he’s a dick in person. But, I think it would be fair to give a little context to the story they are referencing here, because I feel they are being deliberately “vague” about it.
The fan approached him after the final recording of Cabin Pressure. He had said that he didn’t want to sign autographs, and by the account of this same fan, a “crowd” had sprinted after him when he was leaving the building. This fan decided that she was the special snowflake that deserved a piece of him even though he had clearly indicated several times that he didn’t want to be approached. She went there and asked for a picture. When he said no, she insisted and asked for an autograph, and when he said NO again, she asked to shake his hand. And when she didn’t get what she wanted, she decided to write a whiney, passive-aggresive open letter on Tumblr with her “poor me, Benedict is a meanie” story.
She may have wanted to paint her actions as her being all “shy” and innocent, but you know of who this attitude reminds me? of “that guy”. You know who I’m talking about. The one who approaches you, all smarmy, and asks you if you want a drink, or something lame like that. You tell him politely that you are not interested. Yet he keeps at it, insisting, asking why you don’t want to have a drink with him, talk a little, maybe he’s telling you that at least you could dance with him? and you get antsy and annoyed, because you want this to be over, the guy is making you hella uncomfortable, you are giving him all kinds of verbal and non-verbal cues that you want him gone, yet he keeps ignoring them, invading your personal space and demanding your attention. And when you finally get rid of him, probably having to tell him to sod off, he’s the guy that will go to his friends and call you “that stuck up bitch that wouldn’t accept a drink from a nice guy like him”.
Yes, this fan acted like “that guy”. Why is it okay for a fan to act like this? Why is it acceptable to cross all kinds of personal boundaries with your idol? He’s still a person. He has a right to decide when he wants to be available, and when he wants to be left alone. Fan entitlement is a problem and, instead of trying to find excuses or blame the victim, maybe we should start having a conversation about boundaries and respect for other people’s privacy.
