New Netflix movie “Cuties” is getting blasted online for its “sexualized” portrayal of young girls. A trailer for the French film shows pre-adolescent girls dressed in inappropriate outfits while twerking on camera.
The movie tells the story of an 11-year-old Senegalese Muslim girl named Amy. She goes against her family’s strict religious beliefs by joining a dance team and participating in a “twerking competition.”
The movie received an NC-17 rating, which qualifies as the strictest rating in the US. The rating bans viewers under the age of 18 from watching it.
In addition to the trailer, the poster for the film also garnered heavy backlash. The poster shows four of the girls in the movie in revealing outfits while striking various poses.
“Cuties” official synopsis reads: “11-year-old Amy lives with her mom, Mariam, and younger brother, awaiting her father to rejoin the family from Senegal. Amy is fascinated by disobedient neighbor Angelica’s free-spirited dance clique, a group that stands in sharp contrast to stoic Mariam’s deeply held traditional values.”
“Undeterred by the girls’ initial brutal dismissal and eager to escape her family’s simmering dysfunction, Amy, through an ignited awareness of her burgeoning femininity, propels the group to enthusiastically embrace an increasingly sensual dance routine, sparking the girls’ hope to twerk their way to stardom at a local dance contest.'”
The Internet Reacts to “Cuties” Coming to Netflix
Shortly after releasing the trailer and poster, thousands on social media expressed their shock and anger at the streaming platform. Moreover, many characterized the film as “gross” for “sexualizing” young girls.
Check out some of the responses below:
Furthermore, a Change.org petition started with the goal of removing “Cuties” from Netflix. The creator of the petition, Allison Mitchell, slams the movie in the petition’s description.
“This movie/show is disgusting as it sexualizes an ELEVEN year old for the viewing pleasure of pedophiles and also negatively influences our children!” Mitchell writes. “There is no need for this kind of content in that age group, especially when sex trafficking and pedophilia are so rampant!
In conclusion, Mitchell writes, “There is no excuse, this is dangerous content!”
Since beginning the petition, more than 55k people added their signature.
In response to the backlash, Netflix later released an apology on Thursday to Deadline. “We’re deeply sorry for the inappropriate artwork that we used for Cuties,” the statement reads. “It was not OK, nor was it representative of this French film which premiered at Sundance. We’ve now updated the pictures and description.”
[H/T Daily Mail]
