20th Century Fox has issued an apology for their choice of X-Men: Apocalypse promotional imagery that’s sparked immense controversy.
The studio has come under fire for billboards featuring Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac) choking Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) as a visual promotional hook for the film. Critics of the billboard have slammed the imagery as being more representative of a domestic violence PSA than something for summer film thrills. Here’s a look at what the billboard presents so you can see it in context:
https://twitter.com/tulikettu/status/734114140189536256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The negative response to using male-on-female strangulation imagery to promote the movie has now prompted Fox to say sorry and admit the ad was “insensitive.”
“In our enthusiasm to show the villainy of the character Apocalypse, we didn’t immediately recognize the upsetting connotation of this image in print form. Once we realized how insensitive it was, we quickly took steps to remove those materials. We apologize for our actions and would never condone violence against women.”
The apology comes not long after actress Rose McGowan recently tore into this brand of marketing as using “casual violence against women” as a disgusting advertising tactic. “There is no context in the ad, just a woman getting strangled,” argued McGowan. “The fact that no one flagged this is offensive and frankly, stupid.”
So the ads are gone, but it’s probably a safe bet that escalating arguments about the billboards will continue to roll on for ages. (That’s about six weeks in internet speak.)
(Via Deadline & The Telegraph)
