The dust has barely settled on the failure of Madame Web, and we are less than two weeks from when somebody from Hollywood went route one in their defence, and blamed the fans. This is the usual Hollywood cope, and it is never not funny. As we reported at the time, an unnamed Disney executive had chimed in, even though it was a Sony movie, and said:
“…our audience (or the segment of the audience that has been politicized) equates the perceived messaging in a film as a quality issue. They won’t say they find female empowerment distasteful in The Marvels or Star Wars, but they will say they don’t like those movies because they are ‘bad.’ So ‘make better movies’ becomes code for ‘make movies that conform to regressive gender stereotypes or put men front and center in the narrative.”
Oh, how we laughed! You have to laugh, because it is inherently hilarious that anyone can actually view the world this way, and even funnier when they out themselves.
Predictably, this was not the end of it. As the movie sinks and people ask why, the line is going to be trotted out again and again and again. However, this is disappointing, because we had high hopes for the person saying it this time.
Isabela Merced made an incredible switch from Nickleodeon and family fare like Dora The Explorer and Transformers: The Last Knight when she turned up in Sicario 2: Day of the Soldado in the pivotal role of Isabel. With Madame Web, regardless of box office success, and a role in the upcoming Superman: Legacy, it looks like she is on her way to big things.
Well, she’s clearly spent too much time in Hollywood and has received her programming, because when asked why Madame Web failed recently, she said it was for one simple reason:
“…for the same reason The Marvels or Birds of Prey have failed, because the male audience still hides a deep contempt for everything that is starring strong, independent women.”
It is as if Princess Leia, Ellen Ripley, Erin Brockovich, Clarice Starling, and Sarah Conner never even existed, isn’t it? Look, Isabela, random Disney Executive, anyone else reading. It is this simple.
I am very busy and life is also very expensive. I have enough on my plate right now and barely enough time to support my shit, let alone your shit too. Why is it up to me / us to support your shit? You are a strong, empowered woman who wanted strong, empowered women’s movies.
How about you get yourselves empowered to go to the movie theater and buy a damn ticket? Why is it my job to prop up your shit as well as mine, especially when you have spent the best part of the last decade telling me I / we suck and how marvelous you are?
“Don’t need no man to take care of me!” – but clearly do need a man to support your pet projects as you can’t do it on your own.
Get off your ass and support your own thing, and if there isn’t enough support out there to make it wash its own face then maybe, just maybe, it isn’t ready to be a thing! Seriously. I am not needed to go and buy the latest Harry Styles album. That seems to do just fine without me. I did not need to buy multiple copies of Eat, Pray, Love to make it a success. Why should I have to go out and support this, just because?
Gee, I am feeling unexpectedly angry this morning…
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