Last year – so, like, a week ago – you knew Julia Fox from Uncut Gems, or maybe the more recently released No Sudden Move, directed by Steven Soderbergh and featuring an ensemble cast led by Don Cheadle and Benicio Del Toro. So she’s worked with the Safdie Brothers and Soderbergh which is not bad at all for someone with a relatively short Hollywood resumé.
That said, while I’m not here to diminish Julia’s accomplishments, let’s not pretend that we’re talking about her today for her potential as an actor. She’s making headlines, topping almost all entertainment sites, because she’s kicking off 2022 with Kanye West, seen multiple times with him from Miami to New York City, including last night when they went to Slave Play on Broadway and were then out for dinner.
The story is front page at PEOPLE.com right now as they’ve secured exclusive shots of Ye and Julia backstage with playwright Jeremy O Harris and cast members; someone from production obviously provided PEOPLE with the shots and the story – and I can’t imagine this wouldn’t have had Ye and/or Julia’s signoff. The play doesn’t mind the attention and Ye and Julia probably don’t mind the attention, not at all. I mean at one point they had their masks off in the presence of the paparazzi so… you know.
As for what’s really going on between them, whether or not they’re actually dating, how long they’ll date for, how this factors in with Kanye’s goal of getting back together with Kim Kardashian – this, to me, is not the most interesting angle here. The most interesting angle here is whether or not we are witnessing the making of a new gossip megastar in Julia Fox.
Kanye is such a big celebrity that, inevitably, he amplifies the profile of whoever he’s spending time with romantically. But on top of that, you also need someone who understands the game and wants to play it. From what we’ve seen so far, Julia seems prepared and is leaning into her nascent notoriety. Her last feed post on Instagram in 2021 was back in November while doing a Tiffany & Co promo. Nothing on her feed during the holidays and then, after getting papped on the beach this past weekend following her first outing with Kanye… this:
LOL, thanking a gossip column for the pictures and the story feels both old school and fresh. She’s well aware people are talking about her, curious about her, and it’s welcome.
Then last night, there was an outfit change. First a black and blue trench coat, and then later a black leather trench, giving the paps a different look, and you’ll note, at one point she conveniently holds one side of the jacket open to expose the thong pants…. Julia Fox is READY.
This girl is New York hustle. I remember reading an interview she did with Coveteur after Uncut Gems came out and thinking that with a gritty past that includes flipping drugs and dominatrix-ing, and selling her underwear on the street, this was not your typical “Hollywood breakout star” profile. And now here we are – making global entertainment headlines alongside Kanye West, who’s always looking for a muse. If that’s where this story is going, well, we’re not dealing with an ingenue here. Julia Fox won’t be shrinking in the spotlight.
Also, she has her own messy history. Just two weeks ago, around Christmas, she was on Instagram publicly dragging her ex, calling him a “dead beat dad”, accusing him of leaving her “with a 5 month old and a dog and a home and ALL THE BILLS.”
So she has the toughness of a single mom, the street smarts of a New York City kid, the thirst of an influencer, a fame-friendly name (Julia Fox is easy to remember, and it suits her, especially the “Fox” part), and now one of the most famous and famously controversial superstars on the planet is taking her out. The Julia Fox Era is upon us.
