The show business adage that "there's no such thing as bad publicity" is probably true about 99% of the time. But as the media -- and its consumers -- grow obsessively focused on the personal struggles of Hollywood stars, there are rare instances when even a little free exposure can be problematic.
On Friday, Paramount Pictures will release "Drillbit Taylor," a new comedy starring Owen Wilson as a bodyguard hired by several high school students looking for bully protection. The film has been accompanied by most of the marketing efforts typically associated with a national theatrical release -- including television promotions and coming attractions previews -- but you can look far and wide and not find Wilson conducting the kind of interviews that stars of his caliber usually do when they have a big movie to promote.
The intentional choice not to sit Wilson down with television reporters, print journalists and talk show hosts is understandable. The studio worried that rather than let Wilson plug the movie and its comic pedigree ("Drillbit Taylor" was produced by "Knocked Up's" Judd Apatow), his interviewers would steer the conversation toward the 39-year-old actor's hospitalization last summer following an apparent suicide attempt. (The actor has yet to address the incident in the mainstream media.)
So rather than put Wilson together with television or print reporters, Paramount had the actor record "Drillbit"-themed introductions to Fox's Sunday-night prime-time lineup, with Wilson appearing in front of "The Simpsons," "King of the Hill," "Family Guy" and "Unhitched." Paramount said Wilson has done all that the studio has asked of him, and his publicist said the actor's availability was affected by "Marley & Me," an upcoming movie Wilson is currently shooting in Florida.
In some ways, the film doesn't really need Wilson's publicity help. Although the actor has a following among older, well-read filmgoers (his credits include "Meet the Parents," "The Royal Tenenbaums" and "Wedding Crashers"), "Drillbit Taylor" is aimed at pre-pubescent boys, many of whom aren't setting their TiVos for "Late Show With David Letterman" and are not reading this or other newspapers. The interviews Wilson didn't give, in other words, weren't really missed.
But that hasn't always been the case with Wilson or other actors who for personal reasons either weren't able to publicize their films or faced uncomfortable inquiries when they fielded journalists' questions.
