This one’s a star already
FIE on movie actors named Rock, Tab or Chet. A new one’s Ansel. Ansel Elgort’s done the horror f ilm “Carrie,” the “Divergent” series, “The Fault in Our Stars” (some romance f ilm), plus he’s a songwriter, dancer, singer with two singles out, been on Billboard’s cover, has two more movies coming out. And he’s 23. I have blouses older.
He’s now in TriStar’s “Baby Driver” starring Kevin Spacey, who didn’t show for the screening. Also Jon Hamm, who didn’t show for the screening. Also Jamie Foxx, who didn’t show for the screening. Ansel, playing a driver named Baby, showed. His rep whispered: “He looks like a movie star.”
Surrounded by behinds in baggy jeans and bones in unlaundered T-shirts, Ansel was spit-polish perfect. Double-breasted blue suit, starched shirt, perfect tie, shined shoes.
“In this movie, I play a nice innocent guy who likes to drive but gets mixed up with bad boys and pulled into bad stuff by Kevin Spacey. Because of tax breaks, we filmed in Atlanta. Atlanta’s nice but has different vibes. New York is the tops of everything.
“I’m a New Yorker. I live here. My friends and family are here. July Fourth I’m in the Hamptons, where my father (fashion photographer Arthur Elgort) has had a house since the ’40s. No real road there, so nobody’s doing f ireworks.
“I’ve grown up with fashion because of my father, whose photos are on my wall. He likes to take my picture and now he’s taking even more of them.” This Cinema Society screening — where, as far as I could tell, no stars in the movie showed but Ansel — was packed with stars. Crowding Ludlow Street’s way the hell downtown Metrograph studio to see this were Anne Hathaway, Adrien Brody, Darren Aronofsky, Zosia Mamet, Rosario Dawson, Rachel Dratch, Gina Gershon, Kieran Culkin. They must know something I don’t.