Avengers fans have hit out at the support Chris Pratt has received from his fellow Marvel castmates – not because he is receiving it, but because they claim the likes of Brie Larson, Tessa Thompson and Anthony Mackie didn’t receive the same backing when they were the target of trolls online.
It all came to a head after some of the Avengers cast reunited to support presidential candidate Joe Biden at a ‘Voters Assemble’ fundraiser on Tuesday night, and Pratt’s absence prompted many to call him out for not being ‘politically engaged’.
That was teamed with an Instagram post which asked people ‘which Hollywood Chris is the best’, pitting the Guardians of the Galaxy star against Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth and Chris Pine, with Pratt being named ‘worst Hollywood Chris’ and his beliefs questioned online as a result of the ensuing conversation.
Cue a whole lot of Twitter hate, which, we stress, isn’t cool on any level.
Reacting to the vitriol, though, Marvel stars including Robert Downey Jr and Mark Ruffalo, and the actor’s wife Katherine Schwarzenegger, posted messages on Twitter and Instagram in Pratt’s defense.
However, the swift and vehement defense of Pratt prompted many to highlight a perceived lack of support for Marvel stars, mainly including Larson, Thompson, and Mackie, by Pratt’s castmates when they were subjected to sexism and racism online.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGlMURZlYWZ/
For a little background, Larson copped it fairly harshly when she called for Marvel Studios to work on its diversity within the Marvel Cinematic Universe – something Mackie has also called for.
Aside from racist trolls who targeted both those stars (with Mackie in the crosshairs after landing Cap’s shield at the end of Endgame), Larson was attacked by sexist trolls who took a dislike to her comments on equality and feminism – and probably something about how Captain Marvel didn’t smile.
Even though we’re almost positive stars would have felt the support behind the scenes, some fans claimed today the only Marvel stars to stand up for Larson when the trolling hit the fan were Don Cheadle and Chadwick Boseman.
Tessa Thompson was also the target of racist trolls, after she, a multiracial woman, was cast Valkyrie in Thor: Ragnarok, a character who originally appeared in the comics as white with blonde hair.
Scarlet Witch actress Elizabeth Olsen was also driven offline by trolling bullies earlier this year, which garnered hardly a mention from the collective like we’re seeing now. Which is, let’s remember, over a poll.
Fans have mentioned the likes of Emily VanCamp, Zendaya and Scarlett Johansson also being the target of trolls and not receiving this level of support, as was Guardians Of The Galaxy’s Zoe Saldana – who got behind Pratt this week.
And the internet has not forgotten this, as it highlighted the perceived silence MCU stars who aren’t Chris Pratt received from their comrades, with many name-dropping mainly Downey Jr and Ruffalo for not supporting their female co-stars with the same ferocity as they have Starlord.
One replied to Mark Ruffalo asking: ‘Where was this energy when people attacked Tessa Thompson for being casted as valkyrie, where was this energy when Zendaya was attacked for being casted as MJ, where was this energy when Brie Larson was being attacked for speaking up on the lack of diversity in the industry. (sic)’
Calling out alleged ‘white dude solidarity’, another fumed: ‘All these Marvel dudes were REAL quiet when Zendaya, Tessa Thompson, and Brie Larson were getting mercilessly harassed by dudebros…’
And another echoed the same sentiments as they chimed in: ‘Tell me, were you all about defending Brie Larson when she was getting death threats?
‘Because that’s a h*ll of a lot more serious than being voted “least popular Chris”, jeezus.’
While Pratt himself has not publicly commented on the palaver, his wife Katherine Schwarzenegger wrote on Instagram: ‘Being mean is so yesterday. There’s enough room to love all these guys. Love is what we all need not meanness and bullying. Let’s try that.’
We suppose this might be why we can’t have nice things?
Source: Read Full Article