Following several altercations in the media over the past year, actor Alec Baldwin has said he is “done” with public life.
In a 5,000 word article for New York Magazine entitled ‘Good-bye, public life’, the beleagured star outlined his opinions on paparazzi, homophobia and his infamous spat with Shia LaBeouf. He admitted that, apart from the birth of his baby, 2013 had been a “pretty awful” year and had left him feeling “bitter, defensive, and more misanthropic than I care to admit”.
The 30 Rock star was embroiled in major controversy in November, when he was accused of using a gay slur against a paparazzi photographer in a scuffle outside his home. However, in the article, Baldwin refuted claims that he is homophobic and said he was “awash with gay people” in his daily life.
“I’m doing Rock of Ages one day, making out with Russell Brand. Soon after that, I’m advocating with Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Cynthia Nixon for marriage equality. I’m officiating at a gay friend’s wedding. I’m not a homophobic person at all. But this is how the world now sees me,” he said.
“Do I regret screaming at some guy who practically clipped my kid in the head with the lens of a camera? Yeah, I probably do, because it’s only caused me problems. But—I’m sorry, I can’t let go of this—do people really, really believe that, when I shouted at that guy, I called him a “f****t” on-camera?”
Baldwin also lamented the development of celebrity culture and the invasive nature of paparazzi, saying “now, everyone has a camera in their pocket”.
“Photographers today get right up in your face, my wife’s, my baby’s. They are baiting you. You can tell they want to get into it with you,” explained the 55-year-old.
“I’m self-aware enough to know that I am to blame for some of this. I definitely should not have reacted the way I did in some of these situations.”
Baldwin also dished the dirt on his row with actor Shia LeBeouf, which led to the Nymphomanic actor being fired from a stage production of Orphans, saying the actor carries a “jailhouse mentality wherever he goes” and that he “felt sorry for him”. He concluded the candid article by revealing that he “can’t live in New York anymore” and would not be taking part in any further public interviews about his personal life.
“It’s good-bye to public life in the way that you try to communicate with an audience playfully like we’re friends, beyond the work you are actually paid for. Letterman. Saturday Night Live. That kind of thing. I want to go make a movie and be very present for that and give it everything I have, and after we’re done, then the rest of the time is mine,” he said.
“There’s a way I could have done things differently. I know that. If I offended anyone along the way, I do apologize. But the solution for me now is: I’ve lived this for 30 years, I’m done with it.”
