Much like in the case of a doctor preaching about the negative impact of smoking while puffing on a cigarette, there's a certain sense of glee and "right back atcha!" whenever an eco-activist celebrity is caught on the wrong footing. This is one of those times.
Emma Thompson is an established A-lister. With a couple of Oscars and more awards than we could count on her mantelpiece, she's what you’d call a "serious" actress of the old guard. She breathes life into interesting characters onscreen, and she does traditional promotion for her work – none of that social media silliness. When she's not working, she's using her platform to raise awareness on a wide series of issues ranging from climate change and pollution to education and women's rights.
What's not to love about her, right? Well, for one, her hypocrisy on the same issues that she claims to be so passionate about.
Emma Thompson is a name that comes up often whenever there's a larger discussion about eco-hypocrites among A-list celebrities. Just like that doctor who can't be bothered to put out his own cigarette while he's scolding you for not being able to kick the habit, some celebrities who get very passionate in their discourse on climate issues fail to live up to the expectations their discourse gives way to. Thompson is one of them.
Photo: Lurssen
Examples abound. She once flew private out of Los Angeles and into London just so she could attend an Extinction Rebellion march in the capital. Just to put this in the right light, she flew private to London to join a march on the dangers of climate change and urging us, regular folk, to ditch commercial flights to save our planet – no ifs and buts about it.
Thompson often speaks at rallies of this kind, yet she owns homes in three different countries and often jetsets from one to the other – not flying commercial, but private. She is just one of the many examples of holier-than-thou-type of stars who preach extreme measures only for show while they continue living their life as before.
This is necessary context in order to understand the fresh wave of criticism directed at her: Emma Thompson is now in Venice, where she owns a home and is an honorary citizen, vacationing onboard the Eos superyacht. Eos is an older build from luxury shipyard Lurssen that previously held the record as the world's largest sail-assisted superyacht before Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos had Koru delivered.
Photo: Lurssen
Eos is exclusively a leisure craft, and even if it has sails that allow it to sail with zero emissions occasionally, it still relies on a pair of MTU diesel engines, uses generators for hotel functions, and has diesel tenders. After the cruise industry, the sector of private superyacht ownership is one of the largest pollutants in the world, so you understand why people are upset with Thompson for what they see as yet another example of her hypocrisy.
Cruising on a superyacht comes with a huge carbon footprint, and perhaps the worst part of it all is that it's done for pleasure only. It's a wasteful vacation, with the kind of carbon footprint no vacation Average Joe could ever afford would have, even if Joe flew to and from his destination. It's eco-hypocrisy.
From a more superficial perspective, though, Thompson made an excellent choice with Eos – and perhaps a less damaging one than if she'd chosen a traditional superyacht. The 2006 Eos, owned by Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg, is a three-mast Bermuda-rigged schooner measuring 93 meters (305 feet) in total length and 61 meters (200 feet) in height.
It's a beautiful vessel with a traditional and memorable silhouette and an iconic Anh Duong 2.7-meter (9-foot) tall sculpture of von Furstenberg as the figurehead. The exterior is by Bill Langan, while Francois Catroux penned the interiors that were never shown in detail to the public. The owning couple are very private and have never offered Eos for charter, though it has been used to host celebrities like Bezos himself, Harry Styles, or Andy Cohen – and now, Emma Thompson.
Photo: SuperyachtFan
Propulsion is hybrid, with a pair of MTU 4000-series engines helping Eos achieve 16 knots (18 mph/29.5 kph) with ease. While the exterior and interior have gone through a couple of refits – and one particularly challenging rebuild after a devastating fire to the superstructure in 2012 – performance has remained steady.
With an interior volume of 1,500 GT, Eos can accommodate 14 guests in seven suites and a crew of 21 in separate quarters. Unconfirmed reports say that it's the epitome of luxury inside, though the overall styling is understated and elegant.
Whatever Eos is like inside, it's definitely pleasant enough to get Dame Thompson to reconsider her personal stance on the need to reduce one's carbon footprint.
Self-proclaimed eco-activist Dame Emma Thompson spotted wearing a £225 animal print coat and enjoying a seafood dinner on Fox TV founder's £200m yacht https://t.co/knEG5Dt9supic.twitter.com/IY2ulfADQF
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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