As every year since 1985, American magazine People picks Hollywood’s “Sexiest” Man. In 2023, that honor goes to actor Patrick Demps. But where does this tradition come from and what standards is it based on?
He succeeds his partner Chris Evans. Patrick Dempsey is awarded the title of “sexiest man of the year” by an American magazine. People , which dedicates the front page of the November 20, 2023 issue to him. “I am happy that this is happening at this stage of my life,” the 57-year-old actor said in an interview. It’s good to have this recognition, it certainly boosts my ego a bit.” The first thought that crossed his mind when he heard the news. “I was completely shocked, then I started laughing. This is a joke, right? I have always been the second wheel of the carriage,” jokes the interpreter of Dr. Mamur in the series. Grey’s Anatomy “I never even thought about taking this position. So my ego is fine.”
Patrick Dempsey on the front page of People magazine, USA, dated November 20, 2023. People
Limited selection criteria
Because of the magazine People The concept opened in 1985, and around thirty other male figures have received the honor, from David Beckham to Tom Cruise, including Richard Gere, Bradley Cooper and Matthew McConaughey. Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Johnny Depp even won that title twice. However, some famous men who are universally considered the “most handsome” in the show business industry were never cast, such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Ryan Gosling, Robert Redford or Daniel Craig, even at the peak of their careers. And for good reasons. eligibility criteria are not based on a neutral algorithm analyzing an individual’s physique, nor on a global survey. Nor is the result objective.
Indeed, in an interview given on the TV channel’s website ABC News Editor-in-Chief in 2010 People At that time, Larry Hackett was trying to explain the process of selecting the winner. “We know it has to be sexy, but popular. Not too young, not too old and someone who, frankly, we might not have thought about.’ In 2012, the daily newspaper USA Today Interviewed by journalist Julie Jordan, who added: “We monitor these guys throughout the year, and one of them always comes up. … It’s about keeping an eye on them.” She also said the outlet “pays attention to comments posted on People.com” and asks “female celebrities” to pick their favorites.
A tradition inspired by Mel Gibson
However, from the beginning, the concept of “the sexiest man in the world” was invented to reward a person who is far from sympathetic. It all started with an interview with Mel Gibson in 1985, as reported by the American publication. Slate in a lengthy investigation published in 2014 by Journalist People who followed the actor on the set of the film Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome:, was going to depict the dark daily life of a rising movie star who chained cigarettes and bottles of alcohol in the middle of work to forget his personal problems. “I don’t want to do this interview. I don’t even want to make this movie. That’s stupid. Don’t print that,” Mel Gibson told his interlocutor. The story was eventually published, introducing a character “who struggles to gain a foothold by pretending to be sex symbol international, while in reality he is just a classy and drunk person,” he says Slate. And the paper falls on this famous sentence that will mark the spirits: “The sexiest man in the world falls alone.”
“People” magazine cover with Mel Gibson, named “Sexiest Man Alive” in 1985. People
Sales concept
The readers of the most famous American magazine of the 1980s fell under the spell of this first “sexiest man in the world”, so much so that the directors. People identify the economic interest in it; This is how the phrase was born, under the leadership of the editor-in-chief at the time, Patricia Ryan. It is he who turns it into an “annual competition” taking into account the point of view of a “heterosexual woman”. Slate. Knowing that the concept is less about what women really want than increasing magazine sales.
29 years after the Mel Gibson article, it seems the magazine is now sticking to a flatter archetype. Most of the successful ones are American, in their thirties, white, heterosexual, have just starred in a Hollywood blockbuster or are about to. Last year, that title went to hero Chris Evans Captain America who during this time starred in two films (Buzz Lightning And Tea Gray man) and starred in two more (Sorry merchants! And red). In 2013, it was Adam Levine, lead singer of Maroon 5, during his time as a judge on the American edition of the show. The voice. And a year ago, Channing Tatum, whose movies? 21 Jump Street, Magic Mike And I promise you all were released that year.
A controversial result
So what remains of the “Sexiest Man Alive” today? Does he still get the crowd going? According to reactions on social media, the choice of Patrick Dempsey was not unanimous among netizens who criticized the magazine for failing to highlight the masculinity of today’s society. Indeed, even if he is currently in full promotion of a biopic Ferrari By Michael Mann, where he plays Italian pilot Piero Taruffi, his fans claim that he should have been cast in the 2000s when he appeared in the film. Grey’s Anatomy. “I’m shocked he wasn’t sexiest man alive sooner”, “You guys are too late”, “I thought it was a 2013 cover when I read the name. Which team picks this? Or who pays to give him this title?” “Did I time travel? Is this a flashback from 15 years ago?”, “Yes, she’s very attractive, but it’s not 2005, why not choose someone more appropriate?”, we can read in particular in the comments of the publication on the front page of People. on Instagram.
“I can’t believe people are falling for it”
“I am credited, somewhat dubiously, with the invention of this title. But I hate the fact that I gave birth. “The whole idea of ’Sexiest Man Alive’ is such a flawed concept,” Michelle Green admitted. Slate in 2014; “It’s not about saying, ‘I want to sleep with this guy.’ It’s just a smart calculation to sell magazines. And to conclude. “I can’t believe people are falling for this trap.” No offense to Dr. Shepherd fans.
Source: Le Figaro
