The stars of “The Social Network,” the controversial film about the creation of Facebook, have a surprising revelation: Many of them actually do rely on Facebook, just like everyone else.
One in 14 people around the world have an account — maybe that’s why there’s so much interest in “The Social Network,” which depicts how the social-networking site evolved. It’s also one of the things that executive producer Kevin Spacey thinks should help make it a success at the box office.
“If everyone with a Facebook page decides to go see this movie, that’s a pretty good weekend at the movies!” Spacey told FoxNews.com.
In the film, two friends create something amazing that ends up destroying their friendship. Director David Fincher and writer Aaron Sorkin relied upon very detailed sourcing from lawsuits, telling the story through multiple points of view. And it seems everyone has a different opinion of what the truth is.
Mark Zuckerberg declined to participate. Sorkin told FoxNews.com that he reached out to Zuckerberg before he started writing the movie and then again later on to show him the final script. The only notes Zuckerberg’s team had: Sorkin was getting some of the science of hacking wrong.
So who on the production has a Facebook account?
Kevin Spacey says it’s actually him on the page interacting with fans and posting updates. And Armie Hammer (who plays the Winklevoss brothers) does too. But “I check my Facebook on a lunar cycle at best, I’m a very casual user,” he told FoxNews.com. “I check my Facebook when people get mad at me for not checking my Facebook!”
Writer Aaron Sorkin doesn’t have a page at all, however; he made one to do research on the film but took it down once the movie was locked. And Jessie Eisenberg is too humble for the site. “As you can imagine, after taking 5 million pictures on the red carpet, the last thing I want to do is talk about myself in another venue,” he said.
What of Justin Timberlake, who plays Napster co-founder Sean Parker in the film? He has a Fan page (although it’s not Timberlake writing the updates. But he doesn’t have a personal page on Facebook.
“I don’t get a lot of free time and when I do I’m playing golf or basketball or doing something active. I’m also admittedly pretty stupid when it comes to the Internet,” he told FoxNews.com.
It’s possible you’ll walk away from the film thinking Zuckerberg is a thief — or at least feel that he isn’t shown in the best light. Sorkin says most people’s feel they want to give him a hug, however. “The character spends the first hour and 55 minutes being an anti-hero — but the final five minutes of the movie being a tragic hero, which means that he’s both paid a price and feels remorse. I don’t think any of us would want a movie made out of the things we did when we were 19 years old, so I really empathize with him.”
“I don’t think he’s going to be the first guy in line to see the film on October 1, but I think he has far less to fear from the movie than he thinks,” he said.
Many wondered if this was why Zuckerberg donated 100 million dollars to the Newark public school system last week. “The Social Network” cast and crew did not. “Nobody should be questioning his motives, the timing, or anything like that. He has done a great thing and I’ll be donating money to the Newark school district. I don’t have 100 million dollars, but I’ll do what I can to try to follow his great example” Sorkin said.
Timberlake told FoxNews.com: “I get the feeling that people are trying to make something trite out of it, but I think a hundred million dollars is a hundred million dollars; that’s a whole lot of money to donate to kids’ education and I think it’s fantastic.” He stressed that no one was being mimicked in the film. Timberlake briefly met Parker before he was cast; he’s not sure what the Napster co-founder will think of his portrayal, but he hopes Parker likes the movie.
Andrew Garfield, who plays the original CFO of Facebook, Eduardo Saverin, hopes the real Eduardo is not mad or embarrassed at his performance. “It’s very odd when you know that these people are flesh and blood and breathing and living somewhere, it brings a great sense of responsibility when you go to work every day.”
As for Zuckerberg’s donation, Garfield said he was “inspired by it, someone in that position of power and using it for such good should be applauded, it’s a beautiful generous thing to do. That’s someone who doesn’t care about money, who cares about his community, the world and humanity.”
Jessie Eisenberg, who plays Mark Zuckerberg, agrees. “It’s fantastic, I know Newark. It’s great that he donated the money there. He’s joining a long line of philanthropists, and at 26, that’s pretty impressive.”
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