The rise of the fall
Do you hear that? That’s the sound of our idols falling. People we presumed to be unquestionably awesome and arguably great appear to harbour deep human flaws. What makes their predicament amusing is the commonality among them: all powerful men from the world of entertainment fully aware of their place in the pecking order. Given the complicit nature of their ecosystem, they thought they’ll get away with their misdeeds.
Turns out they can’t anymore.
Turns out times are indeed changing.
Every passing day, skeletons from infamous past are tumbling out of the closet. One day, it’s of a formidable producer and another, of an acclaimed actor. Today, it belongs to a brilliant director and yesterday, it was of Louis CK. From the names on the misdemeanor list—and the list is constantly expanding—CK’s affected me the most. Why? Because he is epic. There have been spectacular comedians but very few manage to not only check the pulse of our society but also deliver us a no-nonsense cut-out-the-bullshit diagnosis. Something CK has been doing for about a decade. He always comes across as a person who would say the first thought that reached his mind. What made his words profound is the manner in which he framed them. Moreover, his specialty is touching grave topics most of his peers won’t even bother to look at. From pointing out the rotten privileges of millennials to calling dating a dangerous proposition for women to showing white America a mirror, he has been rightly labeled a moral detective by Evan Puschak.
All the above accomplishments faded a bit yesterday when a report of five women accusing CK of gross sexual misconduct surfaced.
On his part, CK isn’t contesting any of the allegations and has expressed remorse for his earlier actions. As far as the industry is concerned, almost all influential individuals and entities are cutting ties with him. His letter of apology was well drafted but still, it was a result of pressure, not utmost sincerity. Time is a valuable element in matters of emotions. For years, there have been rumours about his transgressions but he chose to call them just that — rumours — instead of addressing the issue head on. Now that he has no corners left to cut, he seems to be caving in. He clearly is in tune with the repercussions of his toxicity now. And so is the industry which is busy maintaining distance in the USA.
We are talking about a nation whose president has several allegations of sexual aggression against him, including one from his ex-wife. Imagine the outrage of being led by a person of such compromised character and not being able to do anything about it. This socio-political aspect of American fabric might help us understand the swiftness in perceived justice against the recently outed sexual predators from Hollywood.
Let’s be clear: Nobody is arguing against CK’s genius. He is, undoubtedly, one of the finest, if not the very best, comedian of our generation. But right now, the doubt isn’t hovering around his calibre. We are on a much more serious track. All those accusations make us wonder how CK must be in real life. Although all the improper acts allegedly took place last decade, it behooves him to prove himself. The price of fame, if you may. Being a father of two daughters only raises the stakes of his moral ground. Was he a horrible person back then? Is he a reformed person now? Or it doesn’t really matter anymore? How could he be the victim when there are victims because of him?
Questions marks, because we are playing out in the theatre of righteousness. We know for sure there won’t be legal proceedings. At best, the spirit of his flying career will be dampened. At worst, his legacy will be tainted. But more significantly, we see how a man took undue advantages of his female colleagues just because he could. CK may not have touched any of them but sexual harassment isn’t only about skin. It’s about the psychological scars you leave behind. And how is he, a maven with his ambitious fingers in various pies of showbiz, to reconcile with that fact? The answer is quite simple. We are hearing the term ‘redemption’ again and again for this ongoing exposé. What we, the bewildered audience of a society, should be aiming for is atonement. The former is a personal journey and can’t be traced whereas the latter is a public closure and sets an eternal example. Of course, we can’t decide for CK to make his choice. He is a giant of his making and his fall, intriguingly enough, won’t be due to others’ design.
As a spectator, I always loved his jokes for their sheer honesty and impeccable clarity. He made genuine attempts to shed light at what we tend to miss. But in the whole process, the spectators often forget that it’s a performance. The comedian is no different from an actor, per se. There’s a script back there somewhere. However, we see a comedian on the stage spewing one funny line another and make so many assumptions at once. For starters, we believe the whole show is a reflection of truth, which might be so provided the comedian actually believes in every little thing he says, which again isn’t always the case. In the throes of laughter, we overlook a lot of subtleties. The job of the person on the stage—or in the cozy chair of a talk show — is to make us laugh and he does exactly that. If he was hiding who he really is, then we are also to be blamed for not giving a damn as long as we got our laughs. At the end of the day, we contributed to his rise. He contributed to his impending decline.
