Can a mother have a profile on OnlyFans? The series "Margo has money troubles" tries to provide an answer
Margo has money troubles is the title of the new AppleTV+ series, and it is also the situation in which Elle Fanning’s protagonist finds herself, born from the pen of writer Rufi Thorpe and adapted for the small screen by creator David E. Kelley. The tone is far removed from the creator’s previous works, aside from his collaboration with Nicole Kidman, who appears here in a small role. Kelley is in fact the mind behind the success of titles such as The Undoing - Le verità non dette, and above all Big Little Lies - Piccole grandi bugie, after a career spent between the legal offices of the 1990s comedy Ally McBeal and the more recent Avvocato di difesa - The Lincoln Lawyer.
Family, motherhood, and complicated relationships in the series
Like in a huge melting pot, David E. Kelley brings together many of the themes and atmospheres he has already explored over his years working on serial productions, having found in Thorpe’s pages a set of topics close to him, to which is added the "oldest profession in the world", yet never as new as it is here. There is the theme of family, of complicated relationships between parents and children, and a legal thread to which the protagonist is subjected and which will determine her future as a mother. Because it is from this condition of unexpected parenthood that the rest of Margo’s life begins, having found herself responsible for a child she had not planned for, fathered by a university professor she was dating, who decides to have nothing more to do with her.
OnlyFans, work and morality: Margo’s dilemma
In the financial situation the young woman finds herself in, with a huge number of diapers to buy and no way of finding a job given her inability to afford a babysitter while she looks for one, Margo decides to try something and signs up to OnlyFans. She chooses to pour her storytelling talent into that space of media content, creating her alter ego Hungry Ghost and going all in, painting her body green and bringing to Earth a young, naive, and sexy alien. The moral question is right in front of her family’s eyes, as well as the audience’s: how will Margo balance her working world with the ethics expected of a parent? And even more: should we even talk about ethics when referring to pornography or, in this case, the consensual and respectful use of one’s own body?
A series that does not judge: the viewer’s perspective
Across its eight episodes, Margo has money troubles is not dogmatic, even though it has a clear stance on the matter. The same stance is reflected in the viewers, who become attached to the protagonist, her dysfunctional family, and little infant Bodhi. But questioning becomes part of the process of understanding each character, and the series hopes it will be the same for the audience, who are drawn closer to the protagonist’s needs and vision (both economic and artistic), with the hope that in the end they remain without judgment, just as all the characters around her gradually manage to do.
OnlyFans in TV series: the comparison with Euphoria
The fact that two current series both focus on opening an OnlyFans account (alongside Margo has money troubles, there is also Cassie’s storyline in the third season of Euphoria) shows that the time to dismantle the taboos around the platform has arrived. This allows for a deeper understanding of the medium these characters intend to use, helping viewers form their own opinion. The way the two shows approach the topic is completely opposite. In contrast to the extreme sexualization of Euphoria, the AppleTV+ series responds with playful eroticism, a teasing excitement that aims to entertain as much as it excites. Elle Fanning, whom we have never seen so exposed, is also joyful and playful in her search for a style to attract fans, while bringing energy and determination to her Margo, both in achieving her professional (and creative) goals and in her role as a mother.
Cast and review: strengths and limits of the series
Delicate and never excessive, Margo has money troubles features delightful characters, from grandmother Michelle Pfeiffer to the protagonist’s father Jinx, a former wrestler with addiction issues played by Nick Offerman. At times, its strength, namely its calm and clarity in storytelling, also becomes its limitation, with occasional pacing issues and a spark that comes and goes. In any case, the series remains a work that attempts to bring into focus a way of living work, motherhood, and femininity today. Perhaps not always incisive and sometimes lacking in certain insights, but flawed in the same way a parent can disappoint you while still loving you, and whom, for that reason, you are willing to forgive for small missteps.
