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Binaries feel distinctly archaic these days, an ill-equipped means of categorizing—let alone understanding—our world and the people in it. But, I wasn't going to let that stop me from asking Madelaine Petsch a very important question: Does she see herself as more of a cult joiner or a cult leader?"Not because I'm a sheep," she continued."I'm not a sheeple. However, I don't think I have the charismatic personality to get people to follow me.
I had spent enough time talking with Petsch to recognize that she wasn't being purely self-deprecating, and was, in fact, sincere when she said she didn't think she has what it takes to compel people to flock to her. But I also only had to look around us to be reminded of who in the room was the natural leader, and could easily amass legions of followers.
Riverdale costar Camila Mendes spoke to me about what it is that makes Petsch's acting so special; she said,"You can't half-ass a character like Cheryl, and one of the many great things about Madelaine's portrayal of Cheryl is that she's committed. She basks in the absurdity of her character and never shies away from that quality." And, Mendes finished,"Then she'll deliver these raw moments of vulnerability that make her character that much more complex.
“Lots of people tell me they were able to own their sexuality because of my character. I'll probably never be able to get over it.” This might sound a little like overkill—after all, FMK is just a game, and these characters aren't real people. Nobody would really think that Petsch could actually want to cause the literal death of any of them, right? Well, wrong.
And, of course, it's not just the videos she's constructing with her edits, but it's also Madelaine Petsch that she's constructing—or, rather, it's the character Madelaine Petsch, who both is and isn't the same thing as the actual Madelaine Petsch. Instead of vignettes from her life, then, Petsch's YouTube channel is populated with the kind of funny, snackable videos that are among the internet's most valuable currency right now. By design, they offer the illusion of intimacy, with none of the vulnerability."What I love about YouTube is that I have all the creative control," Petsch told me.
But Petsch's answer was quick and emphatic."I would rather be in a place," she said,"where we have to be more socially aware than for it to be a place that's totally free and there are no consequences for inflicting physical, emotional, or verbal harm on others." The start of the #MeToo movement was a pivotal time for Petsch. It was late 2017, and Riverdale had just started its second season; she was at a new height of her public visibility, and it would have made complete sense not to draw attention to herself by joining into the conversation. But, that's not what Petsch did. Instead, with one tweet, she expressed her solidarity with all the other people who'd experienced sexual violence.
"Talk about stigma, dude," Petsch said, as we talked about what made her seek out therapy."I mean, I didn't even know what it was, but I used to get really bad panic attacks right before I booked Riverdale. Then, I started getting really bad social anxiety, and I only was able to home in on what those things are and work through them [with therapy]."
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