Celebrities who choose life offline

While social media and smartphones dominate everyday life, several of the biggest names in entertainment say they stay away from technology. From Ed Sheeran to Elton John, the list includes artists and filmmakers who appreciate simpler, less connected routines.

Christopher Nolan

The beloved filmmaker, who recently made headlines for ‘The Odyssey,’ is another major celebrity who does not believe in using the phone. In 2020, while talking to PEOPLE, Nolan opened up about how he believes that phones are a big distraction for him.

“I do a lot of my best thinking in those kinds of in-between moments that people now fill with online activity, so it benefits me. When I’m working, I’m just surrounded by, I mean, everybody’s got a phone. I can’t hide, so I’m very easy to get in touch with when I’m working.”

Dolly Parton

The veteran star has admitted that she does not have social media or a phone and wishes to stay away from it for as long as possible. While talking to the Wall Street Journal in an old interview, she shared:

“I don’t have technology. I only have a satellite dish in my house. So I’ve seen Severance on DVDs that they’re good enough to send me. I don’t have a cell phone. I’ve never emailed or, what do you call it, Twittered.”

The ‘Jolene’ singer is all about staying away from cellphones and the internet. The singer mainly uses a fax machine even in today’s day and age and likes to stay away from social media.

In 2022, while talking on ‘Late Night with Seth Meyers,’ Miley Cyrus opened up about how hard it is to get in contact with Parton:

“Every time I coordinate and kind of communicate with Dolly, it’s still through fax. We do use the phone, but she does a fax, and then someone scans the fax, and then they put it into a text message. And then that gets sent to me, and it’s always signed. She has a phone—she just doesn’t use it, I don’t think. I think someone uses it for her and does the fax machine through the phone.”

Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran does not entirely stay away from social media. While he does not have a phone, he provides himself with some leisure time with an iPad.

Last year, Taylor Swift revealed to the public that Sheeran, who is one of her closest friends, does not have a phone. While appearing on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,’ she shared:

“He doesn’t have a phone. And this is one thing I love about him. It’s very eccentric. Love it. But when I’m going through saying, ‘Hey, who should we call? Who should we FaceTime?’ I’m going through my texts and being like, "Who have I texted within the last, like, month of my life?"

Elton John

The beloved pop icon is another celebrity who is just not ready to embrace the world of technology. He had earlier opened up about staying away from phones in 2013 when he had featured on an episode of ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’

He shared, “I don’t do anything online. I’ve never downloaded anything in my life. I don’t have a phone. I don’t use Twitter. I just have an iPad for the kids to keep Skyping them if I’m not with them.”