Tuesday, Nov. 12 was the second saddest Tuesday of the year for the United States of America.
After a long period of intense voting, the winner of the race for People’s Sexiest Man Alive 2024 was announced: John Krasinski.
When I walked into our weekly Panther Newspaper staff meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 19, I pitched that I wanted to write an opinion piece about how Krasinski should not have won Sexiest Man Alive. I should have never opened my mouth. I had started a war.
I was bombarded with various opinions on the subject, the most passionate coming from Caroline Linton, senior broadcast journalism and documentary major and opinions editor at The Panther.
“If I were a 35- to 55-year-old single woman who reads People Magazine, what am I watching? ‘The Office,’” Linton said. “Who is my dream man? Jim from ‘The Office,’ and he always will be. He is a timeless classic. Look at John Krasinski — he’s a family man, he has a beautiful wife, he is loyal and an all-around great guy. Plus, he’s hella sexy. He has aged like the finest wine out there.”
Don’t get me wrong, I am a fan of Krasinski. No one can ignore how amazing he was as Jim in “The Office.” His work in Amazon’s “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan” is great. His directing and acting work in “A Quiet Place” was absolutely amazing. But that was in 2018. My main argument against him is that he hasn’t done anything this year. He did direct the movie “IF,” where he also voices a Marshmallow. He isn’t a “star” this year like he has been in the past.
In 2023, even though I do think there were better choices than Patrick Dempsey — who I love — he did have a movie coming out directed by Michael Mann: “Ferrari.” In 2022, Chris Evans had “The Gray Man.” In 2021, Paul Rudd had “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” and “The Shrink Next Door.”
Some did agree with my passionate disapproval of this year’s choice, like Ashley Kuckler, a senior broadcast journalism and documentary major and editor-in-chief of The Panther. We both agree that Krasinski is a very safe but unexciting choice.
“People Magazine’s goal at the end of the day is to sell the most magazines,” Kuckler said. “I think John Krasinski is a likable, neutral character that has been comforting for women since he entered the entertainment industry.”
Some of The Panther Staff may be on the wrong side of history in thinking this was a well-deserved win. I am here to tell you why they are wrong.
You probably have a lot of questions. “Who even reads People Magazine?” “Aren’t there more important things to write about, like politics and free speech on campus?” “Why does the Panther staff care so deeply about this?”
Sure, college students may not be the target audience of the print of People Magazine, but they are, without a doubt, the ones who interact with it the most on social media. The build-up every year to the final winner is a lovely time to be on the internet. It is crucial to the culture of today’s entertainment industry, no matter how embarrassing and cheesy it sounds.
I present a short but stacked list of men who could have and should have been the winners of this year’s Sexiest Man Alive award.
PEDRO PASCAL
This, to me, was the obvious first choice for this year. I mean, look at him! He is one of the most beautiful faces we have in Hollywood right now. Where is the Buzzfeed Puppy Interview? (That’s the only video interview of Pedro Pascal I haven’t watched — because it doesn’t exist, and I am obsessed with him).
Pascal has been on a role these last few years. “The Mandalorian” catapulted him into the mainstream, and you can’t even see his face in the show; that is how powerful he is! He’s got the second season of “The Last of Us,” “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” “Materialists” and “Eddington” coming out very soon. This year specifically, he is being praised for his work in “Gladiator II” by the world and Denzel Washington himself! He is getting praise from me for his voice acting work for “The Wild Robot,” too.
All we can do is pray that he is in the running someday. Those big buff Gladiator arms and rock-hard abs can’t go to waste.
GLEN POWELL
Arguably the biggest letdown of the year. I can understand Pascal not making the cut for not having as many projects coming out this specific year to market other than “Gladiator II,” but if anyone is the across-the-board standout male star of the year, it’s Glen Powell.
Within the last year: “Hit Man,” “Anyone But You” and “Twisters” (I thought the white t-shirt in the rain scene made him a shoo-in for this). Future projects “The Running Man,” an untitled J.J. Abrams project and the show “Chad Powers” will continue to put his talent in front of more and more people.
I am going against my criteria here for this nomination — I generally think People Magazine leans mid-to-late 40s to hit their target audience — but I was sure they would break the pattern for our favorite movie star. I guess not.
JONATHAN BAILEY
The timing couldn’t have been more perfect if Jonathan Bailey was chosen. “Wicked” would have been released in the same month, and Bailey is coming off of a Critics Choice Award for his role in the TV show “Fellow Travelers.” Furthermore, his upcoming project “Jurassic World Rebirth” is sure to make a big splash.
Now, I would argue that one of the target demographics for the TV show “Bridgerton” is middle-aged women — the exact audience that People wants to get excited about their publication. Gen Z girls thirst over Bailey, too, even though he swings for the other team.
Bailey would be the first out gay man as People’s Sexiest Man Alive. It would have been so iconic. There was a “Sexiest Fiyero” category on the Readers’ Choice poll that he won, but even that is not enough for this gorgeous man.
PAUL MESCAL
Controversial choice — maybe. Sexy choice — yes.
We all know the power Paul Mescal has over his audience when he is on screen; my “Normal People” girlies know. This year, he brings his charming blue eyes to the screen in “Gladiator II,” alongside my number one choice on this list.
I won’t keep repeating the statement that I am biased, because this is an opinion piece, but Mescal is one of my favorite actors working right now, and I think most of my generation agrees. Yes, People Magazine’s target audience is not Gen Z — but it could be.
I’m putting him on the list to satisfy my own self-interest. Deal with it.
SEBASTIAN STAN
This man is not getting enough flowers for his work this year.
To talk about the original Marvel actors and the work they are doing post-”Endgame” would be another article in itself (I’m looking at you, Evans), so I will keep it short when talking about my man Sebastian Stan.
Out of all of the actors to come out of the shackles of the Marvel Cinematic Universe — not including Robert Downey Jr., who found a way to come back and make more money after winning his Academy Award for “Oppenheimer” — I think Stan has been the smartest with his acting choices, picking some great roles that have really let his acting chops shine.
2024 is a big year for him, with the two films “The Apprentice,” the biopic-esque film about Donald Trump, and “A Different Man,” about an aspiring actor undergoing a radical medical procedure to change his appearance. I haven’t seen these two films yet, but based on the hundreds of reviews I have seen on Letterboxd and Twitter, if A24 had put more attention on “A Different Man,” Stan would be in the running for Best Actor.
Runner-Ups On Izzy’s Personal List:
RYAN GOSLING: Our beloved Ken, Ryan Gosling was apparently not Kenough for last year’s Sexiest Man award, but we couldn’t extend the “Barbie” hype train into this year, too?
ANDREW GARFIELD: He is going to get it someday, I just know it in my heart. When he transitions into a silver fox soon with some grey streaks in his hair, call me. I will be waiting.
CILLIAN MURPHY: Do the ladies love Cillian like I do? Does his Irish accent and piercing blue eyes not do it for you?
I am not turning The Panther into a gossip column, but some sources (X) have reported that Powell turned down People Magazine’s begs to be Sexiest Man Alive. He joins a long list of stars who supposedly turned down the offering. Maybe they did want Gosling in 2023 instead of Dempsey, and he just turned it down.
While the People’s Sexiest Man Alive title is very important to me, there is something even more important we must focus on — getting Pascal and Powell into the BuzzFeed office for a Puppy Interview.
