People trot out this line because they think it effectively diminishes the talent of the cast and of Dunham herself, but of course they’re completely dumb for thinking this. The one newcomer that this label has the best show at being applied to, even though she’s disproven these claims with her excellent and nuanced performance, is Alison Williams, the daughter of NBC News Anchor Brian Williams. Then there’s the daughter of playwright David Mamet, Zosia, who is absolutely outstanding not only in this, but in previous work on United States of Tara and Mad Men. She has cred. Then there’s Dunham, who people cite as coming from fame, even though her parents are essentially obscure artists, a painter and a photographer.
And of course, it’s true that people don’t make these same claims about other actors and filmmmakers working today because they’re not publicized by people seeking any information they can use to discredit them. Duncan Jones, director of Moon and Source Code isn’t dismissed for coming from fame and not having actual talent despite being the son of David Bowie. Jason Reitman’s work on Juno and Up in the Air isn’t diminished just because his dad directed Ghostbusters and numerous other films. So this is yet another criticism people make of Lena Dunham and Girls that simply does not stand up to the slightest bit of scrutiny from a serious person.
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