Chronically offline Nicole Kidman reinforced her grass-touching designation after making it clear that she doesn’t know about the popular X account Pop Crave. At the premiere of her latest film, Babygirl, a reporter for the media company approached her and had to repeat its name, which Kidman shrugged off.
Millions of X users were instantly jealous at this indication that Kidman is not one of them. As Pop Crave operates primarily through their social media accounts, the actor’s ignorance suggests that she is living her best life.
Nicole Kidman, meet Pop Crave
As Kidman engaged with the press at the premiere of Babygirl, an erotic thriller set for release to general audiences on Christmas Day, a reporter for the X-centered media company caught her attention. When the journalist said that she was “with Pop Crave,” Kidman shook her head a bit and asked, “With what?”
The reporter repeated herself, to which Kidman replied, “Oh, great!” Her shrug, followed by a full-bodied laugh, indicated to viewers that she had never heard that name before.
This came as a surprise to many users of X, where Pop Crave is a constant and dominating presence on the subject of pop culture. Even those who are hardly interested in celebrities can’t escape the knowledge of its existence as others spread its posts into all kinds of social bubbles.
‘What the hell, sure’ in video form
Kidman’s casual attitude combined with a demonstration that she isn’t trapped on the most self-hating social media site like the rest of us sowed fertile ground for a new meme. People soon compared the moment to the Jemima Kirke “what the hell, sure” meme from November when she responded to the question, “Are you queer?”
Others are confessing their sins of envy or simply admiring her for showing how offline she is. If the idea of being “chronically online” is associated with social isolation, brain rot, and general misery, then being “chronically offline” must be a mental paradise.
The Pop Crave phenomenon
A man named Will Cosme founded Pop Crave in Dec. 2015, earning over 1.9 million followers in nine years. Though it does have a dedicated website, people know of the company almost exclusively through its social media accounts, especially on X.
According to Business Insider, Cosme is a journalism school dropout who built the X account by posting during his store assistant shift. In 2018, he began to recruit “volunteers” who could “build their portfolio” with their unpaid labor, and maybe someday get college credit or other “perks.”
Experts credit Pop Crave’s success to their ability to post pop culture news quicker than other outlets, breaking headlines with rapid tweets that always include at least one image or video. Their methods have led some to question their editorial standards, especially as they enter into the realm of politics.
Vox senior politics reporter Christian Paz noted in his profile of the company that “as Pop Crave and its counterparts enter more of the hard news space and try to inform followers about politics and elections, the standards should probably be higher.”
Regardless of how they do business, Pop Crave has gained national success and the trust of millions, as well as the notice of President Joe Biden. In June 2023, the presidential X account quote tweeted their post on Ticketmaster and Live Nation committing to transparency around their various fees.
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