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Francis Ford Coppola's Fabricated Film Reviews, And More Of This Week's 'One Main Character'
Every day, somebody says or does something that earns them the scorn of the internet. Here at Digg, as part of our mission to curate what the internet is talking about right now, we rounded up the main characters on X from this past week and held them accountable for their actions.
Each day on twitter there is one main character. The goal is to never be it
— maple cocaine (@maplecocaine) January 3, 2019
This week, we've got Donald Trump faking Swiftie support, Michael Caine's typo, a divorcee oversharing online, a bad tipper, an unhelpful husband and Francis Ford Coppola's controversial new movie trailer.
Tuesday
Ishan Sharma
The character: Ishan Sharma,YouTuber, entrepreneur, bad tipper
The plot: Sharma, whose online profile suggests he is young and from the Indian city of Bangalore, visited New York City and paid $45 for a crepe, sandwich and panini. Considering the items and bill, it appears that Sharma chose a regular establishment, and not something that was priced too high.
When the time came to pay, the waiter, he said, took the $2 in change as tip, which Sharma found extremely odd. After realizing that 20 percent tips are often the norm, Sharma was in disbelief. "20 percent for what?" he wrote. "INSANE!🤯."
Tipping is such a scam in New York!💀
— Ishan Sharma (@Ishansharma7390) August 20, 2024
Why do I pay extra just because restaurants pay minimum hourly wages?
Ordered a crepe, club sandwich and Panini for $45(Rs. 3800).
We paid $50 cash and the waiter just took the rest as tip.
I asked for change and she said "you have to pay… pic.twitter.com/9ggEZHIoft
The repercussion: Tipping culture in America has been discussed to death, both by foreign and local parties alike. The system is far from perfect, and US minimum wage makes it even worse.
However, whatever tipping system that's in place right now — 20 percent if you're generous, 10 if you're feeling like a miser — helps workers directly, and without it they'd be far, far worse off. Unluckily for Sharma, a lot of folks were angry that a kid who's successful would refuse to tip, while there were a few who sided with his conquest.
when you pay eight dollars a month to write long tweets about how you don't tip https://t.co/JLAgWx1XjX
— Hinged Tweets (@eggggggggg) August 21, 2024
The time and place to protest tipping culture is not after you were served a meal by a waitress who you knew was expecting a tip. https://t.co/BUNcSJnBri
— Jack Treanor (@JackTreanor617) August 21, 2024
Same energy https://t.co/RKT8xoIGvH pic.twitter.com/M34nxYsCPo
— Amogh (@_amoghdixit) August 23, 2024
15-20% tip is a customary social custom in the USA. When in Rome do as a Romans do.
— Jimmy Gandhi (@jimmygandhi) August 21, 2024
If you strongly feel that tipping is wrong then don't order food at a sit down restaurant.
you're embarrassing us man
— Neeraj K. Agrawal (@NeerajKA) August 21, 2024
Adwait Patil
Sunday
Donald Trump
The character: Donald Trump, presidential candidate, man desperate for the approval of T-Swift
The plot: On Truth Social, Trump posted various bizarre, AI-generated images implying that Swifties (and even Taylor Swift herself) endorse Donald Trump for president. Of course, she endorsed Biden back in 2020, so it's clear where her political loyalties lie — and the fact that she came out against him in the past has clearly stuck in Trump's craw.
Lol, Trump posted a collage of AI generated Taylor Swift fans wearing ‘Swifities for Trump’ T-shits, and wrote “I accept!” as if this were real.
— Peter Henlein (@SwissWatchGuy) August 18, 2024
I mean…..this is uniquely pathetic, even for Trump. pic.twitter.com/GUVXQLqzYo
The repercussion: This whole thing comes off as desperate and deceitful, and it certainly isn't going to win him any points with Taylor or her fans. The people who would believe a post like his are already voting for Trump, so it's hard to see how this does anything but hurt his chances of wooing Swifties.
i think this is the online equivalent of making a sudden move for a cop's gun https://t.co/UFXiRIxkBl
— Evan Washington (@evanewashington) August 19, 2024
Taylor Swift’s dad: What if they write “Taylor Swift comes out against Trump”?
— ًً (@politicalplayer) August 19, 2024
Swift: “I don’t care if they write that. I’m sad that I didn’t two years ago. This is something that I know is right.”#SwiftiesForHarris pic.twitter.com/SEPuLlNHIh
I guess getting shot was just to toughen him up as he prepared to face the measured response from the most normal fan base on the internet https://t.co/4tJDuusVjv
— Niko Stratis (@nikostratis) August 19, 2024
As a lawyer, I would NOT want to be on Trump’s legal team right now. Squaring up against Taylor Swift’s lawyers in a case about a brand new A.I. regulation would not be a good time! #news #taylorswift #lawyer pic.twitter.com/4P0YAN3rFh
— Cheyenne Hunt (@CheyenneHuntCA) August 19, 2024
“Swifties for Trump” obviously don’t know who Taylor Swift HATES. pic.twitter.com/qwFDSLj99T
— madison’s clown era (@swift13evermore) August 17, 2024
Grant Brunner
Thursday
Ethan Evans
The character: Ethan Evans, retired Amazon VP, LinkedIn influencer, divorcee
The plot: Evans, a LinkedIn influencer, posted a bizarre admission about how his marriage ended in divorce after a CEO he once worked for "seduced" his wife in "direct retaliation" against Evans's "pushback on him at work." A truly bizarre anecdote, it took no time for netizens to make fun of him.
The repercussion: Evans has since deleted his post on X, but it was still available to read on LinkedIn. While the comments on LinkedIn were far more civil, X users were not.
https://t.co/QtcRcUoEOr pic.twitter.com/aw8IGR4K2H
— BuccoCapital Bloke (@buccocapital) August 22, 2024
https://t.co/MRFC5Dn1WN pic.twitter.com/8C2vlucAwW
— Trung Phan (@TrungTPhan) August 22, 2024
My CEO fucked my wife.
— Tel (@telmudic) August 22, 2024
Here’s what this taught me about b2b saas: 🧵 https://t.co/HgYXT5hOtM
Take this shit to LinkedIn lmfao pic.twitter.com/BS4Ldkj8pn
— litquidity (@litcapital) August 22, 2024
this level of sincere-posting is wild https://t.co/hSRVa6Kyk6 pic.twitter.com/gy3L4TjEKa
— “paula” (@paularambles) August 22, 2024
Ex-wife here!👋 To clear the record, his CEO did not “seduce” me. I seduced him.
— Circe (@vocalcry) August 22, 2024
Every moment I had alone with Ethan, all he would talk about was his CEO. In the car. At dinner. While making love.
Eventually, I knew I had to meet this man for myself.
And when I finally did, it… pic.twitter.com/OLR7Uq19st
Adwait Patil
Monday
Michael Caine
The character: Academy Award-winning actor Michael Caine, minimalistic tweeter
The plot: After having a spirited discussion with my co-workers, I was ultimately overruled and the following hilarious Michael Caine tweet is somehow not considered a meme — but a Main Character. How dare we categorize Sir Michael as such? He has never deserved such a label, but alas, here we are. The Alfred to Bruce Wayne for so many typed the following after he decided to remember Nolan's seminal "Batman Begins."
Why do we fall?
— Michael Caine (@themichaelcaine) August 19, 2024
So we can learn to pick ourselves up.
Batman Begin
The repercussion: I have been laughing at this typo for three straight days, it's just so wholesome and funny. The way he wrote it, the way he structured it, the fact that the name of the movie is "Batman Begins" — just iconic and perfect. Please never die, Sir Michael, you are too adorable for this world and we do not deserve you. The fact that I have to share tweets making fun of you, for my job, hurts.
https://t.co/4cVkZ1SQ6v pic.twitter.com/Q4Nl6jA87d
— Rob (@RobsNotTweeting) August 19, 2024
Pack it up, pack it in, batman begin
— Ben M-J (@V_Ben) August 19, 2024
sir, you have a banger on your hands here.
— connor (@ConnorEatsPants) August 19, 2024
batman begin official trailer just dropped https://t.co/YDapeoHQzJ pic.twitter.com/FiMXKiyZJc
— Chris Eames 📼 (@ChrisEamesUK) August 20, 2024
batman begin indeed
— Ryan T. Brown 🎮🩷🔜 Gamescom (@Toadsanime) August 19, 2024
another banger sir
— cinnamon bun (@notsofiacoppola) August 19, 2024
🫡🫡🫡
— nick (@nick_pants) August 19, 2024
Jared Russo
Monday
Tyler Todt
The character: Tyler Todt, X user, "helpful" husband
The plot: In a recent X thread containing advice for a happy marriage, husband Tyler Todt tweeted some advice specifically for women.
"Most of us men really want to help but don't know how," he wrote. "Give us lists! Give us list items weekly we can take off your plate & we love to help! Guys, ask her 'what can I take off your plate today?'"
"We can't READ MINDS."
*Tip for women.
— Tyler Todt (@tyromper) August 19, 2024
Most of us men really want to help but don’t know how.
Give us lists!
Give us list items weekly we can take off your plate & we love to help!
Guys, ask her what can I take off your plate today?
The key is solid communication around this.
We can’t READ MINDS.
The repercussion: Though Todt no doubt thinks he's saying the right thing, a lot of people pointed out that it shouldn't be his wife's responsibility to spell out what she needs help with. Women aren't born with an innate understanding of housekeeping, and don't want to add instructing their husbands to their list of jobs; a truly considerate partner would see what needs to be done, and do it without having to be told or guided.
“Honey, I want to help you, can you make me a list of things to do around here” https://t.co/tRR9kKPtMk pic.twitter.com/scN31Ney10
— Andy Ottaway (blue cheque) (@Andy35o) August 19, 2024
“Give us lists!” Okay, cool, so now we’re your project managers? In addition to taking care of our own shit at work and at home? How about be a full grown-ass adult and contribute without asking permission or for instructions.
— Elle Ayaroheni (@elle_ayaroheni) August 19, 2024
“Ask her ‘what can I take off your plate today?’”
— 🪸soph🧚🏻♀️ (@restingbilfface) August 19, 2024
Meanwhile the visual representation of him ‘taking something off her plate’ https://t.co/oibOWWtDsf pic.twitter.com/eAPKnuufjk
This list thing absolutely boggles my mind. Do the dishes in the sink? Run the vacuum? Clean up the spill in the refrigerator? Wash the towels? Why do I need to tell an adult to do these things? I'm married to one of these "list" men. It is maddening.
— Uninterested Cat Aspiring Bog Hag (@amyinhinckley) August 19, 2024
Tip for men who need lists.
— Andy Ottaway (blue cheque) (@Andy35o) August 19, 2024
Just dive in. Toilets always need cleaning, dishes are never ending, vacuuming is needed as kids eat like animals, laundry mountain isn’t going to fold itself
What changed for me is seeing the house as my responsibility. I’m not just helping my wife https://t.co/tRR9kKPtMk
Fun fact women are not born with the ability to know what to do around the house, maybe be a grown up and fucking figure it out. We aren’t your managers https://t.co/BQvCTrLQFq
— N. 🌺 (@wangcreoles) August 19, 2024
it’s actually very important for younger women to see this sort of thing before they tether themselves to an adult toddler who will burden their lives for years, turn them into domestic robots and later leave them when they have a medical crisis. https://t.co/YAwBaGhXQV
— Beth McColl (@imbethmccoll) August 19, 2024
You’re not a helpless baby. You’re an adult with a functioning brain; learned helplessness isn’t cute. https://t.co/bi7ijXYJNi pic.twitter.com/ouxAn9Egsc
— Bellatrix Lestrange (@jamjam_moriarty) August 19, 2024
pro tip: learn how to help instead of adding something else to her plate. Grown women don't need to teach grown men how to "help." Learn to be attentive and thoughtful.
— emily may (@emilykmay) August 19, 2024
Darcy Jimenez
Wednesday
Francis Ford Coppola
The character: Francis Ford Coppola, filmmaker, alleged creep, quote fabricator
The plot: Coppola has been there, done that when it comes to Hollywood, so it makes sense that he's on an unabashed run with a film he's been trying to make his whole life. First, there were allegations of him being a creep on set, and now it's come to light that the most recent trailer released included a slew of fabricated quotes attributed to real-life critics. Some of the quotes were misconstrued, while others were made up. Within a few hours, Lionsgate, the film's distributor, issued an apology. "We screwed up. We are sorry," it said.
The trailer for Francis Ford Coppola's MEGALOPOLIS features a history of dismissive quotes from noted critics about the director's earlier masterpieces. There's one problem, however. The quotes appear to be made up. https://t.co/4HmboTcpnI
— Bilge Ebiri (@BilgeEbiri) August 21, 2024
The repercussion: Coppola's been getting a lot of heat for this project, and while he does seem to know what he's doing, this particular incident feels like a complete disaster. It's hard to tell what the gimmick was trying to achieve, or whether some researcher just really messed up.
Update: Lionsgate fired a marketing consultant who was responsible for the lapse.
Oh man what
— Mr. Chau (@Srirachachau) August 21, 2024
not this one https://t.co/ndaaMI0NAo pic.twitter.com/QPZga85KzE
— Dave Itzkoff (@ditzkoff) August 21, 2024
holy shit, lionsgate pulled the megalopolis trailer https://t.co/LdlBE4pJId pic.twitter.com/SMscgQ75DQ
— rat king 🐀 (@MikeIsaac) August 21, 2024
The guy who cut together that MEGALOPOLIS trailer pic.twitter.com/Du17iu36pB
— Vinnie Mancuso (@VinnieMancuso1) August 21, 2024
Coppola be like https://t.co/bBwJIH4gQf pic.twitter.com/eY2PT1V7WO
— James O'Brien (@PostCreditsJim) August 21, 2024
Very funny to try and present The godfather, the biggest box office movie of the year, winning best picture at the Oscars and instantly canonized as a classic, as this misunderstood movie, and that’s before you get to these quotes being out right fabrications
— ViewtifulJC (@ViewtifulJC) August 21, 2024
this was the best part of the megalopolis trailer pic.twitter.com/VcbAvsVKUv
— patrick. (@imPatrickT) August 21, 2024
Megalopolis, you'll never be as iconic as Legend using the Guardian's two star review. https://t.co/CVKfiQXTK4 pic.twitter.com/BO4gfNcMN6
— Cethan Leahy (@CethanLeahy) August 22, 2024
Francis Ford when it comes to his old movies https://t.co/N9Ely4Ycrv pic.twitter.com/c9eEpUEp7A
— Chiv 🕹️Denzel’s Nephew 🇭🇹 (@chxvalry) August 21, 2024
Adwait Patil
Read the previous edition of our One Main Character column, which featured a guy who really cares about college administrators, 7-Eleven's new "Hotel California" policy, Obama's latest summer playlist and a controversial Blake Lively interview.
[Image credit: YouTube]