The lives of actresses Stephanie Courtney and Milana Vayntrub, known for portraying iconic brand characters Flo (Progressive) and Lily (AT&T), respectively, shed light on the complexities of fame, public perception, and the consequences of brand endorsement.
Stephanie Courtney’s portrayal of Flo has been immensely profitable, allowing her financial security to the extent that she may never need to work again. Despite the widespread recognition of Flo, Courtney has managed to avoid becoming a target of explicit and inappropriate online attention, a common challenge for women in public-facing roles.
On the other hand, Vayntrub, who played Lily, faced a starkly different trajectory. In a recent profile by The New York Times, Vayntrub opened up about the challenges she faced during her resurgence as the face of the telecommunications company amid the pandemic.
Vayntrub was born on March 8, 1987, in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and immigrated to the United States as a refugee from antisemitism when she was two years old. Her family settled in West Hollywood, California, where she began her acting career at a young age, appearing in Mattel Barbie commercials at the age of five to help with financial difficulties.
She dropped out of Beverly Hills High School after her sophomore year, obtained a GED, and later earned a BA in Communication from the University of California, San Diego. Vayntrub also studied improv comedy with the Upright Citizens Brigade.
Her career in acting began with a debut in three episodes of the NBC television series ER in 1995. She co-founded the YouTube comedy channel Live Prude Girls with Stevie Nelson, gaining recognition and reaching number 93 on NewMediaRockstars’ Top 100 Channels countdown.
From 2013 to 2016, Vayntrub was cast as Lily Adams, a saleswoman, in a series of TV commercials for AT&T.
In 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdowns, she proposed bringing back Lily for AT&T commercials shot from home. However, the reception took a dark turn, with Vayntrub becoming the target of online harassment, with her breasts referred to as “Mommy Milkers,” and accompanied by lewd comments and spam. The internet’s onslaught could have jeopardized her job and prompted AT&T to condemn the harassment.
Vayntrub took to Instagram Live in August 2020 to address the issue, revealing the extent of the harassment, including requests for nude photos and the distortion of her pictures for likes on social media.
“Maybe it just has to do with being a person on the internet, or maybe it’s specific to being a woman on the internet,” Vayntrub said. “But all of these comments — it hurts my feelings. I’m hurting and it’s bringing up, like, a lot of feelings of sexual assault. I am just like, you know, walking my dog and getting messages from people who have distorted my pictures to get likes on their accounts. I am not consenting to any of this. I do not want any of this.”
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AT&T stated support of Vayntrub in 2020. “We will not tolerate the inappropriate comments and harassment of Milana Vayntrub, the talented actor who portrays Lily in our ads. We have disabled or deleted these comments on our social content that includes Lily and we will continue to fight to support her and our values, which appreciate and respect all women.”
Her return to the public eye also caught the attention of Courtney. Despite not experiencing a similar level of online harassment, the “Flo” actress reached out to Vayntrub, providing support during a challenging time. Vayntrub appreciated Courtney’s empathetic approach, stating that the call made her feel “like there were people on my team.”
The reasons behind the divergent experiences of Courtney and Vayntrub are multifaceted and challenging to pinpoint. Variables such as age, character portrayal, and the intentionally unrealistic nature of Flo may contribute to Courtney’s relatively uneventful online presence compared to Vayntrub’s more challenging situation.
The profile sheds light on the darker side of online fame and the impact it can have on individuals, even those with successful and recognizable commercial roles. Despite the challenges, Vayntrub expressed her commitment to the role, emphasizing that the benefits of lending her likeness to AT&T outweigh the drawbacks.
Their stories offer a glimpse into the delicate balance actresses navigate when becoming the face of a brand, where financial stability and recognition come hand in hand with the risks of public scrutiny and online harassment.
To read the entire New York Times piece, click here.
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