The problem with Teen Wolf is that the showrunner, Jeff Davis, acted under false pretenses. He manipulated the shipper fans to win big polls and kept them hopeful by saying he'd consider the ship. Vids of the two actors basically snuggling together (drunk as hell) on a boat got posted and marketing had a generally positive attitude towards it. A few seasons later and he and everyone involved are basically acting like it was all in the fans' heads.

Another problem, separate from the shipping drama, is that Teen Wolf turned into a show that tried to be more than it was. It dropped hints it never picked up again, alluded to plot points that were never there, introduced characters with lots of confetti only to abandon or kill them later on. At first the fans started out writing interesting meta based on the material the show gave them, thinking they had a decent shot figuring out what things meant. Well, it turns out not even the showrunners know what things mean most of the time. They don't even have a show bible. Some characters don't even have known ages or known full names. It's a mess.

I'm not implying the fans haven't done questionable things themselves, but I know for certain that if Jeff Davis had set them straight from the beginning it wouldn't have gotten the way it did. /end OT

Sorry in advance for hijacking, but I think you made a really good point here. When I was a teen (and younger) I got super emotional about bands and actors. Now as an adult I don't want to get invested in someone I will never get to know on a personal level, so I made a point of avoiding actor interviews and gifsets from cons and whatnot like the plague. It's basically a form of self protection because it's not like I'm not vulnerable to stuff anymore. If I let myself I'll probably get a pathetic celebrity crush again.

So what I do now is get invested in the characters instead. (You should see the amount of fanfic I consume. And yup Morgan, I binge read yours as well; terrific work by the way). Them, I actually do get to know and they won't be affected by whatever I do because they don't really exist.

Of course, some things slip through, because I still read blogs in which people for example talk about Chris Evan's supposed state of mind. Which is probably even worse because now I'm not even getting my info close to the source (which even then is still dubious) but from people who consumed that information and interpreted in their own way. So thank you for that reminder, because knowing you don't know people is one thing, but realizing you're projecting stuff onto them is another.

To be truly honest with you I do not get what it is about acting in Hollywood that attracts anxiety ridden people like Chris Evans like a moth to a flame. Why in the world would you want to get in a profession where you're owned by others at the pinnacle of your success?

When you start out you're not famous (which in his case is good) but you're also getting shitty parts, if at all. So your goal is to get bigger parts, because if you truly love acting, then you want to get a role that challenges you. I mean, that's how I figure it works anyway. Then when you start climbing the ladder your parts start getting bigger and maybe a bit better, but you also get more famous. And now, when he is really getting good parts, he's famous at a level he's very uncomfortable with and I just...don't get it.

People talk about love for acting, but how can one truly love acting in the Hollywood system if you cannot love the side effects that inevitably come with being in that position at least a little bit? (Why not do theatre instead?) Of course these musings are useless now because Chris Evans is where he is, but I can't help but be baffled every time this happens.

That said, your description of comic con really saddened me, and I do not understand why events like this cannot be what they are marketed to be. Greed is an ugly thing indeed. I don't get why Marvel is so strict with their actors on their press tours; give them more free reign, lessen the pressure and not only do you make the whole experience more enjoyable for them (because even if they are still puppets on a string, at least it doesn't always feel that way), it also makes for more a more enjoyable fan experience, ergo, more money. Win-win. Lastly, the attitude towards female fans would probably make Captain America cry. Maybe they should act more like the character they're promoting.

Now of course I am not very informed on such matters, so maybe I am very naive for thinking like this.