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The streaming giants are under fire once again! Netflix’s Cuties is being criticized for spreading an Islamophobic narrative and sexualizing children. This happened after Netflix shared a trailer for the upcoming French film on Twitter.
Netflix’s Cuties accused of being Islamophobic
As soon as the Netflix official Twitter account shared the trailer of their upcoming french film Cuties, there was immediate backlash. The French film is based on an 11-year-old girl Amy, played by Fathia Youssouf. She comes from a conservative Muslim family and joins a dancing group called The Cuties at her school. She goes through her flourishing femininity soon, and that’s when she ends up upsetting her mother and the values of her family. This is a very cliched topic, which is often described as a white savior complex. And so, the first thing that people accused Netflix of was blatant Islamophobia.
However, Twitter users accused Netflix’s Cuties of a lot more than just Islamophobia. They also accused Netflix and the trailer of hyper sexualizing children and pandering to pedophilia. A twitter user wrote:
Whether it’s acting or music, a sexualised image is too often the price of mainstream success for Black women & girls. Disgraceful.
It is so revealing that the first major @netflix original to centre young Black girls hinges on explicitly sexualising 11 year old children. Whether it’s acting or music, a sexualised image is too often the price of mainstream success for Black women & girls. Disgraceful. pic.twitter.com/18ItsgIZLb
— Sister Outrider is editing (@ClaireShrugged) August 20, 2020
once again netflix comes out with an islamophobic narrative but this time it’s paired with the adultification of black girls https://t.co/Q9lcVxEH1y
— amal (@amaIogy) August 20, 2020
Moreover, the synopsis of Cuties that Netflix added on the streaming site didn’t do them any favors. They wrote:
Amy, 11, becomes fascinated with a twerking dance crew. Hoping to join them, she starts to explore her femininity, defying her family’s traditions.
Moreover, Netflix used a very inappropriate image as the post for the film. It depicted 11-year-olds in an inappropriate pose, which clearly showed hyper-sexualization of young girls. As a result, Netflix took down the synopsis and the poster, apologizing for it as well. Netflix’s Cuties will be out on the 9th of September. Only then will the audience know for sure whether the movie does pander to Islamophobia and pedophilia.
