2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards - Show
For the uninitiated, a Man Crush is when a straight man has a non-sexual, idolizing fascination with another man. I have many of them, and will be writing about a different one each month.

This week, comedian Billy Eichner enlisted the aid of the unrivaled Paul Rudd for an episode of his “Billy On The Street” web series. The two ran around New York City asking random people if they would have sex with Rudd for a dollar.

The overwhelming majority said yes. Many of them said they would do so for no payment at all.

Hell, I would nail Paul Rudd (okay, sometimes non-sexual). I love that man. And if you don’t like him, then we probably wouldn’t get along very well. Actually, I have written 10 reasons in my Man Crush Journal about why he would be the perfect mate for me:

  1. Rudd is absolutely hilarious. This is a combination of his big talent and willingness to act goofy as hell all of the time. In fact, I would describe him as straight-up silly. He’s been in so many very funny movies in the past two decades, like Anchorman, I Love You, Man, Role Models, Wanderlust, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Wet Hot American Summer* et. al. He’s also nailed a great many comedic television cameos on shows like Louie, Parks & Recreation, and Burning Love.
  2. Rudd seems to me to be one of the most likable Hollywood stars. He’s been extremely kind in any interview I’ve seen him give, and he’s one of the few people who have been famous for decades in show business and have never been the subject of a single tabloid controversy.
  3. Rudd is a diverse actor. He’s known best for his comedic roles, but he’s dominated some very serious roles, too. You may not remember this, but Rudd was in Romeo + Juliet as Paris, and he played Nick Carraway in a version of The Great Gatsby. Most recently, he starred in Prince Avalanche, a touching and underrated film.
  4. He’s got beautiful eyes.
  5. Whatever the opposite of pretentious is, that is what Paul Rudd is. He regularly appears in online sketches like “Billy On The Street” or Rookie Magazine’s “Ask A Grown Man” advice series. This may seem insignificant, but Rudd is a busy dude. He’s very prolific, and doesn’t really need to take the time out to do these things. It definitely benefits the people and entities he does it for more than it does his own personal brand. He’s like the anti-Jonah Hill, and I don’t just mean that because he isn’t shaped like a pear.
  6. Since Rudd has films coming out all the time, he’s a frequent guest on late night talk shows. And he’s always game to talk about whatever, and to do absolutely anything the hosts task him with. Like lip sync singoffs, for example.
  7. Rudd dances a lot in films and during appearances. And he is god-awful at it. But he just goes for it. He’s an inspiration to white dudes the world over who lack proper rhythm and dance moves but just want to let loose and cut a rug. Watching him dance with Conan is pure inspiration, as odd as that sounds.
  8. He and Jason Siegel got really stoned before some of the interviews they did to promote I Love You, Man. This just shows that a) Rudd is capable of a bromance in real life, and b) he really doesn’t care about behaving like a normal human being.
  9. His smile is so pretty.
  10. Despite his success and all-around awesomeness, Rudd just seems like a normal person who wants to be treated like one. I find that to be endlessly endearing.

*Wet Hot American Summer is the greatest movie of all time. This scene is Rudd at his absolute finest.

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