Old School. Biblically Independent.
By Kayleigh Donaldson | Celebrity | June 3, 2026
We've lamented a lot over the years that audience decorum at cinemas and theatres has seemingly declined in the years following COVID-19 lockdown. It's not that everyone was so obedient and considerate before the coronavirus, but certainly, we've seen a hell of a lot more reports of people being rude weirdos in public spaces since then. People have their phones out during movies and plays. Audience members heckle performers. Some sing/scream along with musical numbers. Some people have been ejected from events for being so drunk that they brought the action to a complete halt. Many actors have had to unleash their inner Patti LuPone and call out disruptors. Add Rosamund Pike to that list.
Pike is starring in Inter Alia, a West End play about a hot-shot judge whose life falls apart when her son is accused of rape. It's a very serious, intense piece of work that requires Pike to be highly physical. She recently won an Olivier Award for it, so tickets are not cheap. During a recent performance, someone apparently got their phone out in the middle of her big climactic scene, so Pike called them out after the final bows.
She returned to the stage to thank the audience. "Somebody was texting in this part," she said, gesturing towards a section of the audience. "You know who you are and I'm not going to single you out. Maybe it was very important, and maybe you're a doctor, and you're saving someone's life, and I hope you are, but we do see these, we do feel them. I've got you, I feel like I've got to hold you all, so when I feel that and see it, it's hard." The audience reportedly applauded in response. According to The Guardian, one audience member noted that Pike "seemed genuinely upset" by the moment of poor etiquette.
She's not the only actor to call this out in recent years. Andrew Scott revealed that, during a performance of Hamlet in 2024, someone took out their laptop to respond to emails while he was giving the legendary "to be or not to be" soliloquy. In April, Cynthia Erivo interrupted her performance of her one-woman show of Dracula to call out someone filming her on their phone. In 2022, Wendell Pierce had to stop performing during Death of a Salesman to essentially plead with a drunk audience member who wouldn't stop hectoring the actors.
I know we're all addicted to our phones now but going to the theatre is expensive. Why waste hundreds of dollars on seeing something if you're going to be doom-scrolling throughout? I love cinemas and theatres in part because they allow me a respite from the real world. Yeah, emergencies happen and sometimes you can't prevent a little disruption, but that's clearly not the same thing as watching a play and seeing someone next to you start texting with their screen on full brightness. Everyone who does it thinks they're doing it properly and nobody will be bothered by it. They're always wrong.
Stories like this leave me so tempted to delve into needless psychological analysis. Mostly, though, I think people are just rude and don't care. They think paying the money for the ticket means they have permission to be a jerk because the customer is always right. It's a flagrant sign of disrespect but also one of pure incuriosity. They don't think art is worth their attention. But they still go and ruin everyone's night!
Theatres and cinemas need to reinforce strict rules on this stuff, both in terms of phone use and ejecting people who won't behave. Alas, I feel we've lost that battle already. I have truly lost count of the number of times I've been to events like this in the past year where phones were just out in the air and ruining everyone's night. One exception was John Mulaney, who had a big no-phones policy in place during his recent stand-up tour, and the ushers and security were on high alert to ensure everyone listened. Truly, it made the night better (and we were still allowed to take a photo at the end, so you got your Instagram shot!) Just let us not be d**ks for a little while, please?!
