The price of celebrity. Catfish cohost Max Joseph revealed in a recent essay for Vulture, published on Wednesday, February 24, that gaining a fan base has its downsides — including some seemingly life-threatening ones.
“You may have begun to notice that minor fame is not without its unique anxieties,” he wrote. “A year ago I actually got cyberstalked by someone who called me from my wife’s number and told me he was holding her hostage at my house (using my exact address). It was a hoax, of course.”
On Catfish, Joseph and his cohost, Nev Schulman, help a romantic hopeful learn more about his or her online significant other; oftentimes, their object of affection turns out to be someone different from how they represented themselves on the Internet.
The 34-year-old added that being a minor celebrity has also caused him to question whether he should be doing things such as tipping more or tweeting inspirational messages.
“And when tragedy strikes and the world takes to social media, is it now my responsibility to respond with #RIPs and #prayfors?” he continued. “I am stifled by the possibilities — too shy and self-conscious to leverage this power for world betterment or even personal gain.”
Joseph added that Schulman is “much better suited for celebrity” because he’s able to own the sense of entitlement that comes with being a public figure.
The reality personality hilariously recounted how he once approached Gossip Girl‘s Ed Westwick to take a photo with his wife, and how the exchange left him feeling nervous and uncomfortable.
“I was so nervous and bumbling that I didn’t even see his outstretched hand that he was offering me,” he wrote. “He then proceeded to flirt with my wife before letting me snap a few pictures of them. The whole thing was very emasculating and made worse by the fact that he didn’t even know who I was. At least my wife walked away happy.”
The fifth season of Catfish premieres on MTV on Wednesday, February 24, at 10 p.m. EST.
