HANCOCK SLATED FOR HOMOPHOBIC SLURS
The box-office smash Hancock, starring Will Smith, has been accused by US activists of being homophobic because of its use of a gay slur.
According to Damon Romine of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), the film’s hero uses the word “homo” in derogatory manner in a “cheap gay joke.”
Approximately 24 minutes into the film, the main character Hancock, a down and out superhero, is shown three comic book images in an effort to inspire him to become a better superhero.
Instead, in a scene intended to be humorous, Hancock rejects the traditional images of costumed superheroes commenting on each one: “Homo. Homo in red. Norwegian homo.”
“In that moment, young gay people in the movie’s audience are put in the position of being ridiculed by a character they are expected to regard as a hero,” writes Romine, adding that “Hancock’s use of the slur sends a problematic message that it’s okay to discriminate using such hateful words.”
GLAAD understands that sometimes anti-gay language shows up in dramatic narrative to reveal a character’s true colours, or to convey a message. But there’s a big difference between using it to highlight a character’s anti-gay attitudes and making a cheap, unfunny shot at gay people,” he concludes.
Hancock opened last week in the US, going straight to the top of the box-office and earning $107.3 million in its first six days.
uhm… I think this might be a bit of over sensitivity!
hannock. Sorry but i think you guys are making a mountain of a molehill….and i am gay myself
funny. I saw the movie and i thought it was quite a funny moment.
politically-oversensitive. I saw the movie and while I wouldn’t stand for that kind of language in life, I think it was acceptable for the character. Hancock is the kind of guy who would say those things.
Besides, he’s got the word cock in his name, he’s bound to want to reaffirm his heterosexuality.
Brainwashed. The sad reality is that the reason that you don’t find it offensive is that you’ve been brainwashed to accept this kind of language as normal and funny. It’s easier to laugh than to really think what this language says about our society and the fact that we are still perceived as outsiders and freaks. Don’t you get that young kids watching this will take the implied message to heart?: ie gays are weird, they are “other”, they are funny…
…. Most gays ARE weird and/or funny.
The entire issue is pathetic. What’s the point of living if you can’t laugh at yourself?
Lighten the fuck up, LGBT community!
I have to respectfully disagree with your view here. I would not accept that kind of comment in everyday life, if anyone were to call me a homo, I would punch him in the face (unless he’s bigger than me of course). But in the context of the movie and the character, it is a plausible remark.
I mean, they play “move bitch” in the beginning of the movie, and again I don’t think that’s misogynistic, but rather in line with the character.
people….lighten up.its a joke