How to contact an A-List actor

May 7, 2014 12:03 PM

A friend of mine has possession of an artwork that was created by someone who is now a recognized, A-List actor. He would like to return it.

My role in this is merely to be a facilitator, to find my friend a contact point to put him in touch with the correct minions of this actor. (Famous Actors do have minions, right?), at which point I drop out of the picture. I do have photos of the artwork in question.

So how does this kind of thing usually work? My friend wants nothing (i.e. no money or recognition) other than to return this piece to its rightful owner, but doesn't even want his name on the Internet.

posted by pjern to Human Relations (15 answers total)

Honestly I'd take a selfie of myself with it and a note that says, "Hey, XYZ, I'd like to get this back to you, contact me at [contact info]". Print it out as a big picture and mail it to his or her agent.
posted by tilde at 12:07 PM on May 7, 2014

Without knowing the person, I can only give generic advice, which is to go to their website, find their agent in the Contact area, and send an email with a specific subject line.

On preview, if that doesn't work, use that link that tilde provided.
posted by TinWhistle at 12:09 PM on May 7, 2014

Print it out as a big picture and mail it to his or her agent.

...Or #tweet it at them.
posted by carsonb at 12:09 PM on May 7, 2014 [10 favorites]

I was going to say Tweet as well.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:10 PM on May 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

Different A-List actors work differently. Most have agents. Some have agencies. Some have spouses who are their agents. Sharing who the actor is would be a lot of help. It's not like saying "hey I have a friend who wants to contact George Clooney" is going to give anything away about your friend's identity.
posted by Jairus at 12:10 PM on May 7, 2014

Twitter is one option. Another is to find the actor's agent and contact the agent.
posted by dfriedman at 12:11 PM on May 7, 2014

Best answer: Former assistant to A-list Hollywood people here. You can call SAG in L.A., ask for "agency information," and then ask who the actor's agent is. Once you know that, send a letter to the actor, care of the agent. It will get to the actor's office, though it might take a while.
posted by BlahLaLa at 12:11 PM on May 7, 2014 [8 favorites]

Another idea is the actor's publicist.
posted by dfriedman at 12:11 PM on May 7, 2014

Contact their agent. Unfortunately, determining their agent may not be straightforward. IMDBPro has a "look up agent" feature -- so maybe subscribe for a month? There's also this paid service that claims to provide the information, but I can't tell if it's legitimate.
posted by spiderskull at 12:12 PM on May 7, 2014

From the OP:

but doesn't even want his name on the Internet

If the agent can provide legit proof they are that person's agent and that it will get to them, send it along. Maybe you can use twitter for that, having the A-lister's verified twitter account tweet something completely random like a picture of your elbow snapshotted from your picture. And now I'm getting off into random land. :P
posted by tilde at 12:56 PM on May 7, 2014

Best answer: I have an IMDBPro account- message me if you want me to look it up for you.
posted by drjimmy11 at 1:17 PM on May 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Only SAG will have the most current information. IMDB Pro isn't as up-to-date. You call SAG, you call the agent's office, the person answering the phone gives you their email address, and you email the photo, or whatever. Or you can send the thing directly to the actor at the agency but most unsolicited packages just get dumped.
posted by Ideefixe at 1:24 PM on May 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

I should add -- when you call SAG, they'll tell you the name of the agency. Then call the agency and tell the person who answers, "client information." They'll either say something like "which client," or transfer you to someone who will. Then you say the name of the actor and they say the actual agent's name.
posted by BlahLaLa at 4:06 PM on May 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

return this piece to its rightful owner

Was it stolen? Lost? Usually art is gifted to someone, right?

As a facilitator, you could take the photo of the piece and tweet it to the actor. The minions will contact you.
posted by vivzan at 4:16 PM on May 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

Please don't tweet a photo of it to the actor -- that's so public. As an artist I can say that art-making is sometimes very personal and emotional. Running across old art can make one cringe (or smile), and I'd much rather do that in private.
posted by jenmakes at 10:03 PM on May 8, 2014