Spider-Man Star Confronts Past Racist And Homophobic Comments
A star from a Spider-Man film and the film's diretor have come under fire for past racist comments, with the star of the film attempting to apologize for his actions.
The world is much different these days, in that people often come together to preach the words of empathy, love, and inclusion. Although “cancel culture” is often looked down upon, the new movement of ridding the world of racism and homophobia has certainly attempted to change things for the better. It is quite surprising to see people come out and speak on former comments that were made by them, whereas a ton of other people caught in the act of saying such outlandish things often just deny them. Warden Wayne plays Peter Parker in the new fan-made Spider-Man film, and he has come forward to address his former comments. You can read his statement below:
Horrible comments that are made years ago linger, especially now. People are quick to find old tweets, Instagram posts, and more outlining some horrific things that a celebrity or figure had said when they were younger. Wayne is attempting to apologize to the community in his post, which is more than most do. Most people caught in horrible situations like these often deny what they said or claim it was taken out of context instead of taking their punishment head-on. However, it has been stated that the fan sentiments are not the same, and they are not going to let this one go. The comments made by Wayne might sink the entire Spider-Man project. The director, Gavin J. Konop, also made a statement in regard to the situation. You can see that statement below:
Konop was attempting to show some sort of accountability, but that also seemed to backfire when people began to dig up past racist comments that were made by Konop too. Internet sleuths were quick to point out that Konop was defending Wayne when he has his own dodgy past. Both men have come under fire. with Konop stating that he will address his own issues in a separate post but will be taking a break from social media until that happens. The backlash that both men have received has led to an outpouring of posts asking everyone to boycott Spider-Man: Lotus.
Spider-Man: Lotus is a nonprofit fan-made film that is meant to follow stories combined from “The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man” by Roger Stern, Ron Frenz, Terry Austin, Bob Sharen, and Diana Albers and Spider-Man: Blue by Jeph Loeb, Tim Sale, Steve Buccellato, Richard Starkings, and Wes Abbott. With as many issues as this project is facing, it may be time to call it quits. Lotus was meant to be released in 2022. Also, the acclaimed creators that have work that is being referenced to create this story might also ask for Lotus to be stopped. This is speculation, but this story has garnered enough negative publicity for that to realistically happen.
Warden Wayne has attempted to rectify his past, but sometimes the world does not allow that to happen. Spider-Man: Lotus being shut down or not released might be the ultimate teaching moment to show that Wayne and Konop have much more to answer to. At least Wayne is attempting to take full responsibility for his past comments.
