(Pssst: this is the third in a series about celebrity culture during Awards Show season. Missed the first two? Fear Not! Read Dresses, Drama & George Clooney and Awards Season Pop Culture Mayhem.)
Norm Wilner
Norman Wilner is the senior film writer for NOW Magazine and the host of that new podcast you like, Someone Else's Movie. He lives in Toronto. More importantly, he used to work with PrincessoftheInternet in my old life in Toronto. And once he went to England for work and brought me back Licorice All Sorts WHICH I LOVE even though he was allergic to them (I think? Am I misremembering that?) but then I never got the chance to eat them because I moved back to the Maritimes before we could connect.
And now … heeeeeerrrreee’s NORM!
The Super Professional Capacity in Which You Cover Awards Shows?
I’m the Senior Film Writer for NOW Magazine, and this year I’m part of the Q Oscar Panel on CBC Radio. I also tweet a lot during the Golden Globes and the Oscars.
How Long Have You Been Covering Awards Shows?
Waaaay too long. I don’t remember the first Oscar piece I ever wrote but it must have been in the early ‘90s, and I was watching the ceremonies at least a decade before that.
If you were a celebrity walking the red carpet, what would be your biggest fear?
Sunstroke.
If you were attending an awards show, who would be your dream host?
Anna Kendrick.
This year, we’re seeing a lot of awards show controversy at the Oscars, with #OscarsSoWhite – what impact do you think it will have on the live broadcast and red carpet conversation?
Not much, I’m afraid. The question of representation in awards consideration is something that really needs to be discussed at length, and the Oscars are all about quips and brief comments. There’ll be a couple of jokes, and maybe one nervous moment where someone shows genuine anger, but I guarantee no one says anything that changes the conversation.
What/Who do you think won the least deserved award (Golden Globes, SAG, Grammys, Oscars) in the history of awards shows? (I.E. who was robbed?)
It’s all just perspective. If you’re a winner, you totally earned it; if you’re not a winner, you were totally robbed. Oh, wait: Roberto Benigni.
What’s the one awards show moment you’ll never forget?
A couple of years ago at the Golden Globes, Amy Poehler and Tina Fey made a joke about Zero Dark Thirty director Kathryn Bigelow knowing something about torture because she spent a few years married to James Cameron. The joke was great, but seeing Jessica Chastain, seated next to Bigelow, just lose it and let out a big, barking laugh? That was so weird and genuine that it sticks in my head. It was a purely human moment, and awards shows desperately need more of those.
Why do people care about what other people wear on the red carpet?
Schadenfreude, I assume. Or the freak-show element of it. I’ve never understood it.
Do you care what people wear on the red carpet?
No! Not at all.
Who would you want to talk to at an after party? Why?
Steven Soderbergh, because we could actually talk about the movies. And he’d recommend a good restaurant.
Who do you think is more likely to win an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony)?
- Justin Bieber
- Anna Kendrick
- Terrance Howard
- Kanye West
- Leonardo DiCaprio
- Drake
- Other (of your choosing)
Anna Kendrick all the way. She’s one of the most prodigiously talented people I’ve ever met. It’ll happen.
