As he stood on the staircase and gazed out across the dancefloor of Vanity Fair's Oscars Party, Jon Hamm couldn't help but think
I'm too old for this shit
. Although he was far from the oldest person at the party, he had always felt a little aged out of these sorts of things. After all, he'd only really become a star after he was cast on
Mad Men,
already nearing his 40th birthday, so his first forays into the glamorous life of Hollywood galas came at the age when most people already preferred to stay in on a Saturday night. But here he was, in a hotel ballroom, drunk and quickly getting tired, watching on as the nubile bodies of Hollywood's young stars danced before him with boundless energy, wondering where exactly his place was.
He turned away from the dancefloor and moved his gaze back to the dining tables above him where the older crowd seemed to have gravitated. All across the room, he saw older actresses schmoozing, sipping champagne, giving each other pecks on the cheeks and telling each other that they really must do brunch soon, all of them laughing and knowing that they probably won't. And next to them he saw their husbands, standing silently and smiling dutifully, looking a bit bored by the whole affair.
And I think I might be too young for that shit
he thought, or least too young at heart perhaps. Despite his age and classic movie star looks, he was still a bachelor after all, and he'd be damned if he was going to be stuck trying to make polite small talk with the other middle-aged men when he didn't even have a wife he had to wait on.
So here he found himself wedged between the two crowds, both literally and figuratively, trying to decide where he belonged. As he finished the last of his drink, he accepted that he would probably feel out of place with either, but one more glance at all the sexy young starlets out on the dancefloor at least convinced him that it would be the more fun place to feel out of place in, so he made his way down the stairs.
As he entered into the dancefloor area, he immediately started to notice some of the young partygoers around him. Elle Fanning and Hailee Steinfeld were putting on quite a show, dancing sensually with a pair of young studs they'd seemed to take a liking to. At one end of the bar, Camila Mendes and Maya Hawke had taken some bottles for themselves and were pounding back shots with anyone who came by. At the other end, pressed against a pillar, Florence Pugh and Timothee Chalamet were caught up in a steamy make-out, their hands roaming around each other's bodies as their tongues explored each other's mouths. And over in a corner, he saw Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney, and Maude Apatow hovering over a table, taking bumps from a vial of cocaine that Sydney had been hiding in her ample cleavage. This was young Hollywood alright, in all its wild, uninhibited glory, and he suddenly felt like a school teacher chaperoning a prom that had gotten out of control. Not exactly the feeling he was hoping for, and judging from the way none of the young stars seemed to be paying any attention to him, he imagined they felt the same way.
Wondering if he should just head back upstairs and accept his fate, he took another quick scan around the room, seeing if there was anyone whose eye he could catch. Everywhere his eyes darted, they seemed to find some sexy young actress that was half as age. Maybe felt out of place, but the eye candy was nice at least.
As his eyes continued scanning, they landed on the form of a petite young woman standing between a couple of men, their arms on her shoulders, both clearly vying for her attention. She was clothed in a strappy black dress that showed off her tight, compact body well. It was open at the back and he was drawn in by the soft pale skin, the perfectly shaped curve of her lower back, and the defined muscles of her shoulders. Clearly she took care of herself. His eyes wandered a little lower and examined her legs, just barely peeking out of a few sheer segments at the bottom of the dress. Just as he began to take in her butt, the girl turned. She locked eyes with him almost instantly.
"JON!" she shrieked out as she ran toward him excitedly, drink in hand, barely giving him time to take in that it was Kiernan Shipka, his on-screen daughter for nearly a decade on
Mad Men
. As soon as she got to him, she reached up on her tip-toes and planted a kiss on him. The kiss was quick and friendly, but he still noticed that she went for the lips when his cheek would have been just as easy. He could immediately taste the alcohol on her breath.
"Kiki, it's good to see you!" he said as he leaned in for a hug, genuinely pleased to see her after a few years apart. Although it didn't feel like that long, with only the past couple years of the pandemic keeping them apart, it was clear she had done a lot growing in that period. She had lost a bit of her baby fat and now had the glow of a woman, and based on the pictures he had seen her post on her social media, showing off her tight tummy and posing with a seemingly endless succession of boys, she had the confidence of a fully grown woman too. But as she answered him with, "It's been way too long," he could still hear the slight lisp in her voice that reminded him of the young girl he'd always known her as.
"I didn't expect to see you down here in the kid's section," she teased as the hug broke off.
"Well, age is just a number. I'm young at heart. Besides, I had to come see about all the commotion down here."
"Oh no, has Dad come to get us in trouble?" she asked with a giggle.
"No, no, my Dad cap is off for tonight. Dad Jon is just for TV."
"Well that's good, because we're all being very bad down here," she said coyly. He looked at her a bit surprised, not exactly sure how to take her comment, but she let out another giggle and he laughed along, taking it as a joke. She went to take another sip from her straw, only for it to make a loud slurping sound, the glass mostly just ice now. "Come on, let's get another drink," she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him along with her. As they reached the bar, Camila and Maya were still handing out shots. Maya, clearly already having had a few too many, noticed them first.
"Oh my god, look, isn't this the cutest," she said with the kind of innocent astonishment that indicated she was a rather happy drunk. "Camila look, look, it's a Draper family reunion!"
"Well isn't that sweet," Camila answered with a smile, clearly handling her alcohol better. Kiernan leaned in and gave her
Riverdale
co-star a kiss on the cheek. "Shots?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" replied Kiernan with enthusiasm, "Pour us two."
"Kiki, I don't know," John butted in, "I'm already feeling a bit tired."
"Booooooo," she said turning back to him, "That sounds like Dad Jon. I thought Dad Jon was only on TV."
"Well, it's not about being Dad, it's about being..." he trailed off.
"Old?" she answered, with a faux-innocent smile, knowing it would bother him.
"Hey now--"
"Come on Pops, what's one more drink gonna do?" She held up two fingers to Camila, not caring whether he said yes or no.
"Just one and then I have to go," he said, at least trying to seem like he had some say in the matter.
"Deal!" she answered. As Camila handed over the two glasses, she leaned in and whispered something in Kiernan's ear. The two of them looked at Jon and let out a devilish giggle and Kiernan whispered something back to her. Kiernan took the glasses and handed one to Jon.
"I can't let you two drink alone," burst out Maya, straining to keep her eyes open. "Nothing sadder than drinking alone."
"Oh, of course," said Camila dryly, "nothing sadder than two people drinking alone, together." She poured Maya a shot glass of water, knowing she was far past the point of being able to tell the difference. The four all took their glasses and raised in a toast before pounding them back. Jon noted how easily Kiernan took down the shot without a wince, while Camila had to suck on a lemon after.
She's a Draper alright
he thought to himself.
"Alright, well you ladies clearly have more partying ahead of you," he said before looking over at Maya. "Maybe not her... but this old timer will leave you to it." He leaned in for another hug with Kiki and kissed the top of her head. "It was good to see you, Kiddo. Let's do brunch soon."