The Theme Of Vanity Fair’s Annual Hollywood Issue Is “Celebrity Road Trip On Mars”
Every year since 1995, Vanity Fair celebrates the lead up to the Oscars with their annual Hollywood Issue, in which they gather some of the most talked-about actors and actresses and put them all onto a fold-out cover. Past Hollywood Issue cover themes have included Formalwear, Looking Bored, or Photoshop Mistakes. This year, Vanity Fair went with what they describe as a road movie at sunset. But they don’t specify what planet, and since everyone is redder than an embarrassed lobster, I’m assuming it takes place on Mars, or on the side of a can of Cactus Cooler. Or some red planet with an ozone layer thick enough to blur out 40% of shadows and expression lines.
Vanity Fair released their Hollywood Issue one day after the Oscars nominations were announced, and the timing sucks, because this issue should have been called the Snubbed By Hollywood issue. On the cover is Renee Zellweger, who probably win Best Actress next month. But joining her in a pose that screams Uneasy Rider is Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Lopez, two of the biggest snubs from yesterday. Inside of the fold-out cover isn’t any better. There’s Golden Globe winner/Oscar snub Awkwafina, and Park So Dam from Parasite (a Best Picture nominee with no actors nominated). Of course, the Hollywood Issue isn’t all about Oscar nominees, but it doesn’t exactly help when the issue is released around Oscar time. It’s like Vanity Fair saying:
“Congratulations on your incredible performance! The biggest award show of the season doesn’t care about it, but we do. So here’s your award – to you, from us: a goofy photo session that looks like something done at an amusement park called On Fire Land.”
In total, 23 actors appeared on the extra-long highway cover. It included, from left to right, Eddie Murphy, Renee Zellweger, JLo, Florence Pugh, Taika Waititi, Daniel Kaluuya, Margaret Qualley, Awkwafina, Lily-Rose Depp, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, Jennifer Hudson, Alfre Woodard, Roman Griffin Davis, Noah Jupe, Oakes Fegley, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Lili Reinhart, Park So Dam, Taylor Russell, Antonio Banderas, Austin Butler, and Beanie Feldstein. All of them are stuck on the side of a highway in the middle of nowhere, in varying degrees of distress. That’s how we know this Vanity Fair issue is a tribute to acting. Because none of them are freaking out and screaming for their assistant to call them an Uber BLACK to take them back to civilization, or at the very least, a gas station with air conditioning.
Click through to see the whooooooole cover.
Pic: Ethan James Green/Vanity Fair