Sheryl Sandberg and Roxane Gay: The Limits and Possibilities of Contemporary Blockbuster Feminism

Abstract

Focusing on the heterogeneity of blockbuster celebrity feminism, its limits and its possibilities, this chapter uses Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In and Roxane Gay's Bad Feminist to consider the politics of the contemporary blockbuster and the diverse feminisms embodied by its authors. Although celebrity feminism has always been transmedial, these two authors provide the opportunity to expand upon the role played by digital culture in the constitution, maintenance, and extension of blockbuster feminist celebrity. In the case of Sandberg, Taylor examines the development of the cross-platform `Lean In' brand, problematizing the neoliberal, `post-race' assumptions that underpin the book and its extra-textual campaigns. In the section on Gay Taylor further considers how new media act to help generate, not just feminist fame, but the blockbuster itself, while also underscoring the political potentialities of intersectional celebrity feminism.