Hugh Grant, of British romcom royalty, was photographed dozing off mid-match during Novak Djokovic’s quarterfinal win over Flavio Cobolli on Wednesday. Basically, imagine Weekend at Bernie’s…if Bernie were wearing a suit.
The image was enough to send traditionalists and tennis diehards into a pearl-clutching frenzy: “People have been queuing since 3 a.m. to get into Wimbledon to have a chance to be at this match or even to watch it on the big screen in the grounds. And Hugh Grant slept through the tiebreak. Frankly, I think it is rude,” one disgruntled user wrote on Twitter. Frankly, I think it’s justified.
You’re asking a man in his 60s to sit in a stiff chair in full daylight for three hours while two dudes swat at a tiny ball. God forbid a man gets some shut-eye. Plus, the whispered commentary sounds almost identical to the podcast I listen to to fall asleep, so I don’t blame him.
Hugh Grant Is an Actor. Perhaps He Was Acting.
Have we not considered this was for a role? Who’s to say he wasn’t playing a man who’d had enough? Since when is going full method a crime?
A man nodding off while the rest of the world calmly swivels their heads back and forth over a ball—if that’s not a metaphor for national disillusionment, what is? Is that not performance art?
Tennis Is a Performance of White Affluence.
Grant is clearly refusing to play along in this annual charade of white privilege/linen. He isn’t falling for the posh bullshit. Wimbledon is an annual competition for who can wear the most expensive white dress, and Hugh, our resident disgruntled old man, is opting out of the luxurious pantomime. The designer outfits and royal seating chart aren’t distracting him from the absurdity of it all.
Tennis Is an Unserious Pyramid Scheme.
Another reason Hugh was right: Tennis is less of a sport and more of a luxury scam. It demands a $400 racket, weekly private lessons, club fees, generational wealth, etc. Where is all this money going? Something shady is going on here.
Even the scoring seems like a prank: love, 15, 30, 40? Who came up with that? It feels like a code invented to keep the poors confused.
Napping Is a Radical Act of Peace.
The courts seem to attract the worst egos. And isn’t it a bit on the nose that a sport so obsessed with civility also produces some of the most spectacular meltdowns? Smashing rackets and shouting at judges doesn’t exactly scream sophistication—even if you’re doing it in a white polo shirt.
Grant’s nap, in contrast, was the height of chill. Very sophisticated. A passive refusal to participate in a game where the pros can’t even pick up their own balls. (Don’t get me started on the kids sprinting around so grown adults don’t have to bend over.)
No, Hugh Grant didn’t insult Wimbledon. He exposed it for what it is: medieval pageantry and aristocratic theater clinging to relevance in the modern world. What’s the best way to protest this snotty showmanship? Napping.
Let the man sleep.
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