Kevin Sorbo has sparked outrage after complaining that Hollywood men aren’t “manly” anymore.
The 65-year-old actor – who is known for starring in 1995’s Hercules: The Legendary Journeys – claimed in an op-ed for Fox News that there has been an “anti-men” campaign pervading the American film industry in the last 20 years.
In the article titled “Let’s make Hollywood manly again,” Sorbo used a line from 2004’s The Incredibles to make his point, writing: “Elastigirl says ‘Leave the saving of the world to the men? I don’t think so,” explaining that this “underlies every major entry for cinema’s largest metonym”.
“Everywhere we look, bold, confident, self-assured females upstage passive men who recede quietly into the background. Into the basement. Into the past,” he said, alleging that fathers have become the “butt of every woke Hollywood jab [as] the bumbling, useless idiots who contribute nothing to their families or communities”.
Many moviegoers would argue that superhero movies from the Marvel and DC Universe that feature very masculine men have dominated the industry for the past decade.
However, that isn’t the Andromeda star’s belief as he bizarrely contended that he wants to see more “men we’d want our sons to emulate and daughters to date” on our screens.
Sorbo then went on to state that “society today seriously misunderstands masculinity,” pointing out that “on the one hand, we love to normalize androgynous, Billy Porter-type men who sport skirts and poofy dresses”.
He also took aim at British GQ’s best-dressed actor Timothée Chalamet, strangely saying that he sports outfits that “your grandfather” wouldn’t have been caught in before making a transphobic point about Dylan Mulvaney.
The Xena: Warrior Princess actress spoke about other factors that he believes are the reason why Hollywood men aren’t “manly anymore,” such as “alcohol, drugs, video games, p**n, and other entertainment.” He didn’t, however, use any evidence to back any of that up.
“In reality, America today needs warriors; protectors; responsible and committed fathers,” he penned. “We need men who will raise their kids, defend their homes, provide for their families, and serve self-sacrificially – all of which is impossible if they are dissipated and addicted to pleasure.”
Sorbo continued that boys “need heroes” and that’s why Hollywood should illustrate that “through the medium of filmmaking in this generation”.
After reading his op-ed, many users rushed to social media to slam the actor for his complaints regarding men in Hollywood.
“Those tough guy movie characters that swaggered hit women, or reveled in gratuitous violence were an obnoxious aspirational macho persona,” one disappointed user wrote.
Another angry user added: “Ok, so kind, caring, intelligent men frighten y’all?! I know of a whole lot of men who have those gentler qualities because they are man enough to!”
“They can back their play, and are just as masculine as the next guy, they’ve simply grown out of the toxic part of our society’s version of masculinity,” they continued. “So, what y’all are really saying when you support absurd posts like this is that you aren’t able to grow into, or appreciate true, non-toxic masculinity, period.”
Sorbo concluded in his op-ed that Hollywood needs to “reintroduce good men” that love and protect their wives and children, as well as “fight for what’s right, and speak up for the powerless”.
“Men who, above all, have overcome their own selfish desires and are free to put others first,” he added.
Well, Sorbo, I’m sure you can do all that while rocking a gorgeous black dress on a red carpet.
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