Fans and internet trolls love to call out a celebrity when they've gone back on a promise. Just look at how people have treated Billie Eilish after her more controversial videos following her promise not to debut a more risky image... She made that promise when she was underage, but still, she was called a hypocrite. Then there's Ed Sheeran, who was recently called a hypocrite for slamming award-show negativity when he himself took part in that atmosphere years ago. In short, nobody can change nowadays. If they do, they're punished for it. The same seems to be true for Queen's Gambit star Anya Taylor Joy. And that's a bit of surprise given just how beloved she's become.
Anya has had quite the filmography before and after The Queen's Gambit. She's about to star in Edgar Wright's new film Last Night In Soho, but it's another movie that has gotten fans up in arms. And this is because she promised never to take a movie like it. Here's why she made that promise, what that movie is, and why she decided to take part in it...
The Comment Anya Made That Made It Seem As Though She Made A Promise Not To Take A Certain Role
Roles for women in Hollywood have evolved over the past few decades, there's no question about it. We've come a long way since the stereotypical love interest role or the damsel in distress... Then again, we also haven't. There are still copious roles like this and have been even with the evolution. That's not to say that all these types of roles are bad or don't serve the story... that is, after all, the most important part of storytelling. All parts must be in service to the bigger picture. But there's also a social responsibility of not showing marginalized groups in the same roles over and over again. Not only is that morally questionable, but it's just bad storytelling. But it's the moral reason why Anya Taylor Joy decided that she would never take a girlfriend role... Until recently...
In 2018, Anya did an interview with The Guardian in which she described her dislike of the "girlfriend" role. Fortunately, Anya has almost entirely avoided these kinds of roles throughout her impressive (yet relatively short) career thus far. In the interview, she credited this to her amazing team who have always looked out for her and allowed her to explore her creativity and voice without being pigeonholed.
"Most of the women not only that I've been lucky enough to play but that I've read are quite complex, messy, interesting human beings," Anya said to The Guardian before claiming that more young women her age should have the same opportunity. "I shouldn't be the anomaly here, I should be the norm."
She went on to basically make a vow that she would never take a role that would compromise this position. But in 2021, fans are calling her a hypocrite.
The Role That Has Caused Some Fans To Call Her A Hypocrite
Between her 2018 Guardian interview and now, Anya has held true to her promise. SHe's only been taking interesting and dynamic roles. But recently, she took one that has caused many fans to call her a hypocrite. While some fans were thrilled that she decided to play Princess Peach in the live-action Mario Bros. movie others weren't happy.
Given that movies that are based on video games tend to be pretty one-dimensional, there's not really a strong chance that Anya's Princess Peach will be given much to do. Most importantly, the character herself is entirely the girlfriend/damsel in distress role. The entire point of most of the Mario Bros. game for Mario to rescue Princess Peach. So, it makes little to no sense why Anya would take a role like this after what she said to The Guardian.
But times have changed. There's just no way a big-budget movie like this would risk making a female character so one-dimensional at the benefit of a male character. It just can't happen nowadays Therefore, it's highly likely that the filmmakers have altered the role in a way that makes her more engaging. They also probably focused more on other aspects of the video game character concluding the fact that she is the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom.
So, while some fans still need to be proven that Anya is, in fact, not a hypocrite for taking a less than respectable role for a woman nowadays, in all likelihood, she will be absolutely rocking it as an engaging, strong, and funny Princess Peach.