A controversial billboard promoting the impending edition to the X-Men films Apocalypse has spurred an apology from producers 20th Century Fox after it was met with a torrent of disapproval for depicting violence against women.
Featuring key characters Apocalypse, played by Oscar Isaac, and Jennifer Lawrence’s Mystique and the evocative tagline “Only the strong will survive”, the poster aimed to capture a seminal moment in the film but one that’s a little on the nose when taken out of context.
Considering the ongoing issue of violence against women, and the countless other still frames that could have been used for the poster, it seems to be a fairly inappropriate choice.
In a statement released via The Hollywood Reporter, Fox explains “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.”
People’s gaze was first diverted to the poster thanks to US actress Rose McGowan. McGowan frustratedly pointed out “There is a major problem when the men and women at 20th Century Fox think casual violence against women is the way to market a film.”
Speaking to Rolling Stone, she added: “There is no context in the ad, just a woman getting strangled. The fact that no one flagged this is offensive and frankly, stupid. The geniuses behind this, and I use that term lightly, need to to take a long hard look at the mirror and see how they are contributing to society.”
Sadly, it seems that McGowan is copping some flack for raising awareness. Much of the hate seems to stem from the fact that her character Paige battled men in Charmed, which just makes me want to go back to bed and restart the day.
