Ready for a new Shockya.com feature? Well, this one is actually more of a mini-series. It’s stating the obvious to say, Twitter is all the rage, and since Hollywood is no exception, we know a good chunk of your “following” list is likely your favorite movie stars, TV actors, musicians and celebs. There are hundreds out there and I’d like to bet you just search their names and click “follow” regardless of the content they’ve got to offer. Before you know it, you’ve added dozens more and that original celebrity becomes a mere +1 on your following list. Well, we’re here to help you with that.
Over the next few weeks, a bunch of your favorite Shockya.com reporters will post a piece on his or her top five celebrity tweeters. We weed through the shamelessly endorsing, nonsense writing or simply silent famous faces on Twitter so you don’t have to.
Get ready to click that follow button, because here come my top five favorite celebrities to follow, naturally, most of which come from the film community – but a little TV, too! Enjoy and be sure to keep an eye out for next week’s top five famous tweeters!
1. Julie Benz – @juliebenz
As I’m in the habit of following celebrities before interviews, I joined Julie Benz’s growing list of followers way back when The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day was about to hit theaters. Ever since, I’ve followed her exit from Dexter, experience on No Ordinary Family and more, all the while Benz kept the info fresh, interesting and frequent. A major issue I’ve got with tweeters, celebrity or not, are those that either tweet too often or not enough. Too often usually results in a click of the “unfollow” button while tweeting too sporadically simply makes me forget you even exist. However, Benz finds that happy medium. She pops up on my feed every so often appropriately either supporting a good cause, dishing on her latest production, or, my personal favorite, sharing pictures of her adorable dogs.
2. Eli Roth – @eliroth
Here’s where my soft side for horror kicks in. As a huge fan of just about everything Eli Roth touches whether it be as an actor, producer, writer and/or director, keeping updated on his exploits was a must. The guy may have no problem ripping a helpless victim limb-from-limb, bashing someone’s head in with a bat or making a poor young girl contort in disturbing directions, but something that’s quite evident through his tweets is that Roth is downright passionate about everything he does. Roth was thrilled to retweet a slew of Last Exorcism praise back in August, is always updating his followers when and where his films are airing on TV and even extends his enthusiasm to films he isn’t even part of. Even better? He makes me feel better about my issues by tweeting things like this – “Sometimes I have movies in my head so sick & disturbing they won’t let me sleep. The movie won’t stop no matter what I do.” I feel your pain, Eli.
3. James Wan – @creepypuppet
Might as well continue my horror streak; writer-director James Wan is somewhat new to the game, but ever since he re-started tweeting back in February, I’ve been hooked. A hot topic on his feed from the beginning was Insidious, so following its progress up until the release and then actually being thrilled with the final product was incredibly rewarding. Having gone through the past few months with Wan via twitter, I kind of felt invested in the production myself. Perhaps this is too personal to suggest our entire readership to follow Wan, but another thing I particularly enjoy about his feed is that he keeps the chatter flowing with reporters and critics, a lot of which I know making his feed a bit more intimate rather than the typical celebrity preaching session. The only thing he’s missing? Some twitter background music. I automatically start humming Tiny Tim’s “Tiptoe Through the Tulips” whenever I read his feed.”
4. Ashley Benson – @ashbenzo
Thanks to an addiction to Pretty Little Liars, actress Ashley Benson made her way onto my Twitter newsfeed and her updates proved to be a fantastic show companion. Not only does Benson post frequently, but, well, normally, too. While a good portion of her tweets are devoted to celeb status behavior like photos from the make-up trailer and updates on her latest professional accomplishments, she also sprinkles in quite a bit of “normal” stuff, melding right into my closest friends’ tweets – hopes for another dog, a coffee run and, my personal favorite, her thoughts on the latest films. Then again, her Hollywood tweets aren’t jaded in the least. In fact, they provide a rather refreshing look at life on a TV show. She’s constantly tweeting back and forth with her co-stars and posting silly photos and videos, turning Pretty Little Liars into more than a simple TV show that runs on a weekly basis for a portion of the year, rather a program that sticks with you even after the episodes end.
5. Milla Jovovich – @MillaJovovich
What’s better than a big star in blockbuster movies? A big star that takes you along for the ride as she makes and promotes those massive productions. Another winner via frequent and interesting tweets, Resident Evil’s Milla Jovovich has a lot to say and it’s damn fun to listen, er, read. When Jovovich isn’t providing the latest on her upcoming films like Three Musketeers or giving us a firsthand look while she travels the world promoting the latest in the Resident Evil series, she’s talking to her fans. For a small chunk of most days, Jovovich replies to a slew of her followers. No, getting an @ reply from your favorite celeb isn’t life changing, but it really could make someone’s day and when a big star takes the time out of his or her life to give back to the fans like that, it makes me view that celeb in a new light.
Well, that’s that for me. Clearly I’ve got a soft spot for frequent tweeters who like to update us on his or her latest projects and go the multimedia route, sending out pictures and videos. Looking for more celebrities to follow? Keep an eye out for next week’s edition from Rudie Obias. For now, be sure to check out a super special feed, that of yours truly – @PNemiroff.
By Perri Nemiroff
