Why Jesse Eisenberg Quit Facebook After 10 Minutes
The star of ‘The Art of Self-Defense’ and ‘The Social Network’ on fighting bicycle thieves and why he shuns social media even though he headlined the definitive movie about it
July 19, 2019 1:51 pm ET
I used to be scared of needles, but then I thought if I were getting pricked for something other than my own selfish interests – like checking my iron levels – I would get over my fear, so I started giving blood. It worked. Now I give blood every 52 days and track my donations on the Blood Donor American Red Cross App. I want to give blood in all 50 states. So far, I’m up to, like, five or six states. But I’m gonna get it.
My family keeps our stuff in a house in Indiana, but we don’t live anywhere. We kind of just couch surf. So, the storage unit attached to our car is essential. It’s called a SportsRack, but it’s the least sporty thing in the world. It seems to be made exclusively for new parents with too many toys.
I don’t use social media, but during rehearsals for “The Social Network” I signed up for Facebook under an alias for, like, 10 minutes. I figured it’d be irresponsible not to know about the thing my character built. But I quickly got an email saying, “We think you’d be friends with this person.” It was my sister’s best friend from high school. It confirmed that I don’t want them having more information than I’m aware I’m giving.
I listen to podcasts like people watched “Days of Our Lives” 20 years ago. I can’t miss an episode. One of my daily favorites is “The Gist.” Host Mike Pesca absolutely brilliant. I’ve been on the show a few times, only because I’m such a fan.
For someone like me with a car that’s constantly moving around, who’s looking for different parking spots in different cities, the SpotHero app is unbelievable. If you look on the app in New York, you’ll realize certain parking garages are 10 times more expensive than the one just next door.
I ride a bicycle everywhere, even if I’m just going to a corner store in New York. But my bikes would get stolen all the time so now I ride a Citi Bike everywhere because they can’t really be stolen from me. I love the technology behind bike-shares and how well the app works.