5 Innocent Movies That Became Toxic
How could anyone possibly use Sonic the Hedgehog to justify sexism?
Every movie that has fans is going to have toxic fans. Anything remotely popular, from films to sports teams to politicians, is going to attract at least some despicable people.
Sometimes, toxic fandom can get out of hand and lead to legitimate "evil" -- which is worse than some stranger cursing you out online for your opinions on Star Wars: Episode VIII -The Last Jedi.
Often, people will bully writers, directors, and actors involved with films they didn't like, sometimes even sending them death threats.
However, the difference between that kind of toxic fan and some of the fans of the entries on this list is that the fans of these entries actually like the movies. They're not sending death threats to creators, they are praising the creators for the wrong reasons.
These fans take unintended messages from these films and use them for evil in the real world. Whether it be xenophobia, violence, or even all out war, these "fans" totally misread the movies they claim to love. Here are five (mostly) innocent films which their toxic fans have tried to use to justify evil.
5. Sonic The Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog is an adorable, blue, super-fast, alien...thing. (He's not really much of a hedgehog, is he?) How could anyone possibly use his 2020 film in a toxic light?
Sonic the Hedgehog was released on 14 February, 2020, making it a questionable Valentine's Day date for any of the couples who saw it on opening night. It came out a week after Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey, then called Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.
For some reason, the DCEU's best film to date was struggling at the box office. Competing with the little blue guy didn't help, especially when several online sexist Sonic fans pushed for seeing his film as a way to stick it to Birds of Prey. They couldn't fathom a female-led comic book film succeeding (more on that later), so they rallied behind Sonic to create a false sense of competition.
The worst part is that the two films have nothing in common. Sonic the Hedgehog is a kids film about friendship, while Birds of Prey is a dark, Pulp Fiction-esque look into Gotham City. They both work for different reasons, so there's no reason to pit them against each other unless you want one of them to fail.