Rambling Reporter

Red Carpet’s New Normal: Mask, Show Vaccine Card or Nada?

L.A.’s July 17 reinstated indoor mask mandate is highlighting disparate COVID-19 protocols as Hollywood continues to step out (although in-person attendance may reverse as well, if Megan Fox’s declining last minute to go to her July 19 Midnight in the Switchgrass premiere at L.A. Live is any indication). Apple TV+ required attendees of July 15’s premiere of Ted Lasso’s second season to be tested in advance, wear masks and show proof of vaccination. At a Bachelorette: Men Tell All taping at Warner Bros. Ranch, reporters took a PCR test 48 hours prior, a rapid test upon arrival (regardless of vaccination status) and an online health screening. For Neon’s July 13 Pig premiere at West L.A.’s Nuart Theatre, guests were required to show proof of vaccination, but a THR reporter was never asked for it nor requested to mask up on the press line. At MGM’s West Coast premiere for How It Ends at the NeueHouse rooftop, star Whitney Cummings summed up the situation: “Everything is so stressful.”

Event insider Darrin Pfeiffer says premiere attendees have been compliant so far: “Knock on wood.”