Kutcher isn't just a pretty face. He's figured out how to portray himself as a 'man of ideas' in this nerd age
What can we learn from Ashton Kutcher?
Hot on the heels of George Saunders' commencement speech, in which the novelist shocked the class of 2013 by urging them less toward professional advancement than personal integrity – to "be kind" – comes Kutcher at the Teen Choice Awards, with a speech expressly modelled along the same "life lessons" lines.
Kutcher, of course, is promoting a biopic of Steve Jobs and all those hours in the black turtleneck have probably gone to his head. His manner on stage and in his media appearances of late has been of a man who has seen the meaning of life and doesn't know if the rest of us can take it. (For which also see: James Franco). But the three inspirational bullet points he works through at the awards, somewhat to the bafflement of the pubescent crowd, are an interesting departure in the context and indication of a newish celebrity arena that flagging movie stars want in on: the rock star nerd guru.
The TED franchise has a lot to do with this, of course; and the boom in the self-help market, wherein the spirit of "and you can too" has proved lucrative to those who can bolt on a spurious business application to their cultural or journalistic insights. It's not an obvious route for film and TV stars, who have traditionally based their appeal on the notion of intangible superiority; they have what they have because of something we can't have – stardust, the secret of which can't ever be shared.
But this is the age of spilled secrets – of a general dismantling of the barriers between Us and Them – in which the other model starts to look rather old-fashioned and dim. If we know anything at this point, it's that there can be greater rewards for giving away free what was latterly hoarded.
And so here's Kutcher, a shrewd guy who runs a successful investment fund alongside his acting career, and whose speech one takes as an expression of sound business sense, as well as anything more altruistic.
If you can get through the unbearable opener, when he reveals that his civilian name was "Chris" (Ashton is his middle name), and that as Chris, the mortal, he figured out the key to success, the insights are solid: that there is no particular secret beyond application. That "opportunity looks like hard work". That being smart is being sexy (a huge cheer goes up on "sexy", suggesting the crowd isn't fully absorbing his message). And – quick on the uptake, old Kutcher – that it's a good idea in life to "be generous".
"It's just crap that people try to sell to you, to make you feel like less," he says in a riff on consumerist culture (see also: his ad-campaigns for Nikon, and Popchips) and as if he is talking on a panel at the Y.
The pay off, too, is straight from the new lecture playbook: grandiose, uplifting, slightly non-sensical: "build a life, don't live one". Brad Pitt has his dull architecture schtick; Matt Damon his thoughts on education; but here Kutcher pulls into a clear lead with his Man of Ideas play and the rest better look lively. Expect to see a lot more like this coming soon.
Source: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/emma-brockes-blog/2013/aug/26/ashton-kutcher-man-of-ideas
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