As I covered a few days ago, Michael Fassbender covers the new, special-edition, collector’s edition of Elle UK. In the first batch of quotes, Fassy was talking about how he didn’t really think of himself as a good-looking guy, and how he was a very awkward youth. It was sort of charming, I guess, if you’re into that kind of thing. Which I’m not anymore. For me, the bloom was off the rose as soon as I really read Fassy’s recent GQ interview. It’s not just that Fassy seemed childish about Oscar campaigning – his attitude reminded me of a kid who didn’t get his way so he’s going to take his toys and go home – but Fassy also seemed… I don’t know, not all that bright? It’s not that I liked Michael for his mind or anything, but he just seemed like such a dumb bunny in that GQ piece. It killed my crush.
I bring the GQ article up again because I think Fassy said something else kind of stupid in his Elle interview. He was talking about all of the dong-talk during his Shame promotion, and he pretty much claims that he was being sexually harrassed:
Michael Fassbender’s takes jokes about his penis size in good humour. The 36-year-old actor played Brandon Sullivan in 2011’s sexual exploration movie ‘Shame’ and appeared in a full-frontal nude scene which showed he has an impressive manhood.
Fassbender admits his naked appearance prompted many of his Hollywood peers, such as George Clooney, Sarah Silverman and Charlize Theron, to make quips about his appendage but he doesn’t take their comments to heart.
In an interview with the new UK issue of ELLE magazine, he said: ”I can’t start saying, ‘Wait a second there is more about the film than my d**k; it’s one scene and it doesn’t go on for very long.”
Michael insists they are double standards in Hollywood as women would be protected from being ridiculed over their body parts, because it would be considered harassment.
He explained: ”It wouldn’t be acceptable it would be seen as sexual harassment, people saying [to an actress], ‘Your vagina …’ You know?”
The Hollywood hunk wasn’t too bothered about shooting the nude scene at the time and just got on with the job, even though he had normal insecurities like about stripping off like any other guy.
He explained: ”I’m insecure, of course I am. But that was just a matter of me going, OK and just getting naked.”
[From Elle UK via Contact Music]
If he felt uncomfortable about all of the dong talk as it was happening, then fine. That’s his right. I think he handled it pretty well at the time, using the discussion to his advantage to get more people to see his film. He took the talk in stride, because why wouldn’t he? He has a huge dong and no one was saying anything BAD about it. I will give him this – he and his dong were being objectified in the same way as many, many actresses have been objectified. But is it sexual harassment comparable to what an actress doing nudity would face? No. It is not. There’s a difference between the boys’ club praise of patting a guy on the back for his dick size versus asking an actress about her vadge. That being said, have you been paying attention to the young French stars of Blue Is The Warmest Color? They have been asked repeatedly about the nudity and the graphic sex scenes in the film. They talk about it because it’s part of the film.
Photos courtesy of Elle and PR Photos.
I kind of see his point. In many articles, interviews, even speeches by other celebrities he was reduced to his dick.
However, I’d be a lot more sympathetic hadn’t he laughed his ass off every time they (Clooney, Theron and others) mentioned it.
ETA: Even his father talked about being “proud of him” — no, not for his talent or the recognition he was getting for his acting skills, but for the fact he had a big dick.
I don’t understand how you could be proud of that, did his dad secretly sneak Miracle-Gro into his veggies at night? That seems ridiculous to me.
I think I read that here. When asked about his son’s (now infamous) nude scene, he said he was “proud”.
EDIT: Actually, it was Fassbender himself who said his father was proud of his full frontal scene:
” There, Fassbender jokes that his father was ‘very proud’ when his full frontal scene came on screen. “
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/michael-fassbender-shirtless-full-frontal-nudity-shame-x-men-george-clooney-282871
The quote says “Fassbender jokes that his father(…)” so his father actually didn’t say anything i.e. Fassbender is the one joking? Ah well…
Well, that’s up to interpretation: he could have literally said something or not (that’s why I edited my comment and added the bit showing it was Fassbender himself who mentioned it).
Honestly, I think that makes things actually worse. He himself joked about his big dick, to the point of saying his father was proud of it.
I’m in no way saying Fassbender doesn’t have the right to be offended. He absolutely does. I just think he could have shut that down sooner.
A big dick is nothing to be ashamed of, ladies, so just stop it.
Indeed, but oh well if he didn’t joke about it and shut it down, people would say he takes himself way too seriously, at’s some point it’s a lose-lose situation here. I think that he was self deprecating at times, no harm in that per se, sometimes you’ve got to play the game to sell your film. But even if the Shame mania is gone, people mostly remember him for the full frontal nudity so far, not for the jokes around that followed.
@ Violeta:
Like someone said downthread (I believe it was Guesto), he probably felt refrained from flat out telling people they shouldn’t joke about his penis because he was “the new boy on the block”. I understand that, and sort of agree that that may have been the reason why he didn’t (shut that down sooner). But part of me still thinks he was, in a way, flattered at first.
I can only speak for myself here, but I would never say he took himself too seriously for not wanting people to talk/joke about his penis. It’s incredibly invasive, if you think about it.
@OKitt, you’re killin me Smalls..
And I agree with Eve, I wouldn’t have been offended if he said “More than my dong starred in Shame” or something to that effect. I do think there is a bit of difference in the way it was referenced by people though. Like Clooney was jokey, where Theron seemed more harassing, but maybe that’s just the way I took it.
…ew.
Technically speaking, under certain circumstances, Fassbender is right: he was being sexually harassed. I know this because we’ve had to have seminars on this in one of my former jobs. If you even talk about sex stuff with someone who hasn’t invited the conversation or in front of a third party who was not part of the conversation, that is sexual harassment. And being constantly asked about something like that in the course of work, which I guess might include all those interviews, might loosely fall under that definition. And unfortunately that’s all anyone seemed to want to focus on regarding his performance in Shame, which for all its titillating hypes was one of the least sexy films you could see. It was actually a depressing film about a couple of messed up siblings. By being brave and out there in his performance, he put himself in an awkward and lingeringly uncomfortable situation, one that I suspect he fears might overshadow all of his future efforts as an actor.
Blame on the media exposure about his genital parts for not being nominated for an Oscar.
Personally, I would nominate him just for his big dong. In fact, that should be a category, Best Dong.
Can we also nominate Ewan MacGregor? I adore our Ewan, but (bless him) that’s probably the closest he will ever get to winning an oscar.
TOK: I would too! I love this category. But we are talking about “The academy members” who didn’t seem very comfortable with that. I guess they are only comfortable when women exposed their bodies.
@T.Fanty: I think so!
That’d be as about as useful/worthy as any of the other categories. I feel like it’s pretty funny when people take entertainment industry award shows seriously. Like, it’s about as legitimate as the Dundees. So whether or not he did or didn’t get nominated for his schlong is irrelevant. It’s irrelevant to the quality of his performance, and that’s what merits focus, from him, his peers, and everyone else.
Well, he isn’t wrong. I can see how he’d try and laugh it off initially, but after awhile, people reducing him to his magnificent package is kind of tacky. And annoying, considering he’s such a great actor. If it were the other way around, like he said, there would be all kinds of thesis papers and dissertations about the reduction of woman–but I guess since he’s a man, some people will think he has no right to complain. *eyeroll*
I agree…he is an amazing actor and it was lost in all the penis-envy (I too rewatched the opening scenes one too many times 🙂
Having a big d*ck is seen as such a great thing that people probably feel he should be happy he’s getting so much attention for it.
I think he set the bar too high though…now that’s what I’m expecting during any full frontal and am left disappointed with anything less (I’m thinking of Vampire Eric here)
+1
I can understand that. An actress w/especially large breasts, or who had shown her vagina in a nude scene, wouldn’t want to forever be *known* for it, or only associated w/it. Many guys would disagree that being called ‘Micheal “The Dong” Fassbender’ was negative or insulting, & having a large dong is praised in our society, but he has a career he cares about, which isn’t p0rn, so I can see why it’s be upsetting.
I find it hard to feel sorry for him about this. I mean, is he trying to say he didn’t know that he is well endowed and he didn’t realize this would be talked about ad nauseum especially since he a well know hunk of an actor? He knew what he was in for with this film and he knew *it* would be a point of discussion when the movie came out. Now he is complaining because he feels the discussion has gone beyond what he wanted. Well, welcome to the real world Mr. Fassbender.
It isn’t the first time he has been nude in a film, it is only the first time (that I know of) where the camera angle was deliberately at a point to highlight his dong. Also, it is not one scene, it is two. They may have shot it all on the same day, but it is edited into two scenes that are almost identical, so what was the point of the second scene?
On top of that he takes a leak on camera, which appears to be a real one. His back may be to the camera, but you can still his well endowed self and the usual motions a man goes through when done.
There was really no need for the nude scenes or the potty scene for that film IMO. It could have been done just fine without it and still made it’s point.
Please, if you are going to agree to get that graphic then you better be prepared for anything as far as feedback.
+1
Totally agree with you. Just reading the comments from this site, I have no idea if this man can act, But, I know he has big d**k.
+1000! Carrying a Y chromosome doesn’t mean that one surrenders his right to being treated with the same respect and decency that XX’s have.
I agree with you, which is why I find it ridiculous he thinks he’s being harassed. We XX’s don’t get the sort of respect and decency that excludes us from being reduced down to our vag’s and breasts. That happens all the time. It’s an oblivious perspective to think that women are protected or something, remember what happened the day Emma Watson turned 18? It’s actually kind of offensive that he thinks his “harassment” is the same as what a woman puts up with from SOCIETY which habitually reduces women to their sexual organs. Welcome to the world of women, Michael Fassbender. It sucks to not be treated like a human being. But him getting paid a lot of money to be reduced to his sexual organs is not the same as women who have to put up with it everyday without their consent. Yuck.
What happened to Watson?
@ Jo ‘Mama’ Besser: It was a f*ckin free for all to get a pic of her crotch the day it became not illegal for them to sell it. One pap even laid on his back so he could position himself to get a shot. Just hearing about it makes you feel disgusted, imagine how it felt for her. Which further emphasizes how ridiculous it is for Fassy to front as if he has to suffer something women don’t. Women have had to endure their worth being reduced to their sexual organs far longer than Fassy’s experience. By that I don’t mean to trivialize his emotions, but to emphasize that the perspective that he’s a special snowflake in this regard, is willfully ignorant.
I don’t know Kaiser, I think there’s a very fine line… I was uncomfortable on his behalf, to be honest. There was too much dong-talk. Just because he was being given compliments doesn’t mean he can’t feel objectified.
But if he really feels that women are being better protected against this kind of scrutiny then he’s being terribly naive.
EXACTLY. Just because it was a compliment, doesn’t mean it’s any less uncomfortable. And I actually find it a little hypocritical, considering most people wouldn’t bring that up if it was the other way around.
This ! At the end of the day, even us here on this site were calling him by Fassdong. It can be fun for a while, but it’s not like he’s making a career being a sex symbol. He’s a good actor, he goes for all kinds of roles and it must be horrible to not turn this page and move forward. Maybe Kim Kardashian doesn’t bother people talking about her butt, but I’m sure Kate Winslet would feel uncomfortable if people were talking about her body parts all the time.
I’m glad he’s saying something; IMO, men have to eat a lot, in service of keeping so-called female fans placated. I think of Matthew McConaughey and the incessant Magic Mike references that GMA’s Lara Spencer made for a better part of a year. A freaking year… really?!! Maybe that was his motivation to make better films that doesn’t require him to take off his shirt.
And people wonder why Charlie Hunnam ran from the Fifty Shades movies because he knew that the nastiness heaped on him was just an appetizer for what was to come, and sadly, it would’ve been worse for him if he ended up satisfying/surpassing expectations. Some women take things too far and they are the main ones who uses internet anonymity to great and very negative effect.
I was too and it was just getting downright gross. The focus on a non pornographic actor should NOT be on his dick. Too crude.
I agree, it’s one of the reasons why I rarely ever read articles on him (and also for the fact that I think he’s completely overrated). It’s not amusing to read countless waxing poetic comments on his penis. Again, that’s why I rarely read posts on him.
It’s not that they’re being better protected necessarily, but they are certainly better defended.
People are constantly defending Christina Hendricks’ for not being just her boobs. CONSTANTLY. But let Fassbender or Hamm say that they’re uncomfortable with the tacky talk about their genitals and point out the hypocrisy, you get either silence or “he’s a man, he doesn’t have the right to be offended!!!!!!1”.
Good point.
I did got uncomfortable too. I was kind of difficult to read so post in this site with all the Fassbong talk and felt that either he felt the same way or was kind of egoistic, it was just so much.
At some point, enough is enough. I’m sure he’s sick of talking about his Fassdong.
I see where he is coming from. Still haven’t seen “it” though. I should probably get on that…
Uh… women in Hollywood are protected from being ridiculed about their body parts? That’s not even a little bit accurate. I get the point he’s trying to make, but he doesn’t understand the hostile workplace issue at all and should use a different approach. Just say he finds it embarassing or whatever and stop trying to jump on an the gender equality bandwaggon here.
Women might get asked about nudity and their body but not about their vadge.
That may be the only body part women aren’t scrutinized for. Fassy has a legitimate complaint but it is not sexual harrassment.
Yeah, I get that dumb bunny vibe from him after that GQ article too. As far as the dick talk goes, though, I do think he has a point. If an actress bares her breasts in a film, NO ONE is going to make jokes about their size to their face in front of a room full of industry peers. But it’s somehow ok when it’s a guy’s dick they’re joking about. I felt back for Fass every time it happened. You could tell it made him uncomfortable, but he had to laugh along with everyone else in that moment. What else could he do?
There’s an interview where that guy from MTV repeatedly asks him about his dick and Fass just walks away. (I think I remember something like that.)
Presumably, you missed the opening song at the oscars? Where actresses were ridiculed in a room full of their peers. Like someone said up thread – Fassbender has a legitimate complaint about a good performance being reduced to nude scenes, equating that to sexual harrassment is a leap.
Yes, I understand that he feels objectified, and it’s fine for him to speak about that. But it bugs me that he thinks he’s somehow MORE of a victim than a woman who is sexually harassed.
I get that. But at the same time people think it’s OK to talk about his genitals because they’re complimenting him. That’s not ok. I don’t think he’s trying to say it’s worse, I think he’s just saying you don’t see critics and interviewers going on about a ladies vag, or whatever the same way you see them wanting to talk about his package.
Think about how much his dong is discussed on this site. Lovingly, of course, but still. Would this be acceptable if someone was constantly remarking about the size/shape/whatever of the genitals of women? I think since this is a site dominated mainly by women we may not understand it quite as much from a male perspective, the same as how he may not be able to understand it from a female perspective.
You don’t see critics and interviewers going on about vaginas or breasts because it’s standard that women show them in movies (ok, not vaginas, we’re talking more about vulva, right:P?). You don’t see penises in movies on a daily basis, so that’s why everybody was so excited:P
I tried to say the same thing in my post Erinn but you said it much better!
No one gets on stage at the golden globes to talk about the size of Scarjo’s breasts or how pretty Helen Hunt’s p**sy was in her film is his point. Women get asked about nudity in general but people don’t cross the line to ask how the feel about their breast size or vadge shape in public.
That headline is misleading and I think you’re reading too much into it. He never said he was more of a victim. And what he’s saying is accurate. If a woman’s breast or vagina were constantly being brought up in interviews people who object but because he’s an attractive man people just laugh it off.
+100,000,000
Just so you know, in the actual article, in context, these quotes come off as polar opposite to how they sound here.
@Kate – Yes they do.
In fact I’m baffled as to how they’ve been turned into a negative.
I agree with you, Kaiser.
*commences talking about Fassy’s dong*
You’re such an unapologetic size queen.
😛
I know, Eve. Sometimes I feel bad about it but I grant a lot of leeway for men’s other physical attributes so I feel that it evens out.
I’m not demanding perfection, just a decent-sized dong.
You wouldn’t be even slightly disappointed if Cumby had nothing going on downstairs?
…not even a little bit let-down?
Well, as I said before: I prefer the smaller to the bigger. Unless it’s ridiculously small — which I don’t think that’s my husb…oops, T.Fanty’s husband’s case.
Some people on ONTD called it a “baby carrot” but they LOVE to hate on the man for whatever reason they can find, even the most absurd ones (like the latest: one of his great-great uncles, on his mother’s side, was once accused of murder so, OBVIOUSLY, that’s proof he, Cumberbatch, is a horrible person).
I’ve seen others saying it’s (Cumberbatch’s penis) average and I’m pretty happy with that. If I ever have the pleasure to meet it in person, that is.
P.S.: I sometimes wonder if people over ONTD are downright crazy.
Please stop discussing my man’s junk. I consider it harassment.
Sorry, my bad. Old habits die hard.
Oh Eve, your enlightened ass always manages to make me feel like a cavewoman.
Still, I guess it’s good that we’re both happy with our husbands’ units.
PS What’s ONTD?
It’s not exactly enlightment — more like fear of the huge ones.
ONTD ( the acronym stands for “Oh, No They Didn’t!”) is a website/public forum, where the posts are written by the users (or copied and pasted from other sources) — they LOATHE Cumberbatch over there. It’s pure, unfiltered hatred.
They used to be funny sometimes, but the jokes (about his name and looks) have become increasingly repetitive and mean. And I’m ok with people having issues with Cumberbatch, but some of their arguments are nonsensical (like the one I mentioned above).
HE’S NOT HER HUSBAND.
OKitt, don’t make me come over there.
I don’t see anything wrong with anything he’s saying here. He has every right, after all this time, to find focus on his dick tiresome and insulting, as if, despite his achievements to date, that’s all there is to him and the characters he plays. It was the same with ‘Hunger’ – a dark, difficult and extremely complex role, and yet all some people could talk about in the aftermath was his nudity. Pathetic and childish.
The only reason he laughed about it initially was because he was a new boy on the block and probably felt he had to be a ‘good sport’ about it. I thought Clooney’s comment at the time was pretty pathetic and immature, as it goes, not to mention being factually incorrect since Clooney has never done full frontal in his life and never owned that crown he claimed (so smugly) to have passed on to Fassbinder. In his dreams 🙄
He deserves better and good on him for voicing his irritation.
He uses the words “you know” much too often. Maybe that’s part of why he comes off as dumb.
As for the dick jokes; he did seem a bit uncomfortable when Charlize Theron complimented him at the Golden Globes. He laughed at the time, but his eyes and body said something else. Poor guy. Still want him in my bed though!
He’s from Kerry, that’s how they speak down there “ye know”!
Oh I didn’t know that. Then I take it back. Sorry.
This. And I understand what he means about women in the industry. Sure women on a whole are sexually harrassed more than men but actress’ breast and vagina aren’t joked about at awards shows.
Just because he’s a guy doesn’t mean he should suck it up. That’s why people think males can’t possibly be sexually harrassed/assaulted.
+1
+1000
Him “voicing his irritation” also serves as fuel to the fire that I didn’t even realize existed until now, admittedly I don’t watch award shows. As for women not getting the same treatment, isn’t getting celebrity upskirt shots a thing? It is, so yeah, famous women do get reduced to their vag. At least, for him, nudity isn’t going slow his career, he doesn’t really lose professionally. He happily accepted payment to show his dong and I think many of us would roll our eyes just as hard if an actress who did a nude scene cried “sexual harassment” after she cashed her check.
I was tired of hearing the jokes and if I am and I don’t even KNOW him I can’t imagine. Having to laugh at the endless jokes at awards shows etc. It got old very quick. I like the interview didn’t realise he was in the magazine when I got it but that was a bonus. He came off ok.
Nah, I think he’s completely right in calling what he faced sexual harassment. In terms of it surpassing what women face, strictly In terms of press reaction to full frontal, I’d have to agree, he just didn’t word his sentiments very well.
In terms of full frontal, a woman doing promo isn’t complimented on her breasts, there’s no reference made to someone’s nipples, etc. The most that is asked is if they were uncomfortable or if it was awkward or their thoughts about nudity, what they did to prepare. No lewd comments. So it is absolutely different in that regard.
That being said, of course women face harassment in other regards in film – Anne Hathaway in her cat woman suit caused inapprorpariate question lines, same with Scarlett Jo being questioned about wearing underwear underneath her suit for her action flick.
Anyone else just a bit sad that Kaiser’s broken it off with Fassy? I remember the glory days of her ‘step off’ letter to Charlize…
Nah…imaginary divorces happen all the time.
I’m kinda pissed she’s now claiming to be *MY* man’s rightful owner — I’m sorry, I meant T.Fanty’s man.
HEY! I can hear you!
Sisterwife, please let me defend our territory. Your job is to salve my wounds after Eve shanks me and keep our darling drunk uncle locked in the library with the sherry and a housemaid until we return.
He’s is right, and I don’t think he was saying that he is/was more of a victim than women.
I don’t think the headline really matches the tone of his comments.
He’s a great actor who had finally arrived. I’m sure he was prepared for some jokes and dong talk but it started to overshadow everything.
Objectification is objectification, implying someone can’t find the scrutiny of their genitals invasive because of their gender is absurd.
+1 times infinity and beyond. THANK YOU.
YES exactly!
Well said.
I wouldn’t say that they can’t find it invasive because of their gender, I’d say it’s ridiculous to find it invasive when they accepted payment for that situation.
I think he’s right–I didn’t see his comments as him thinking he was a greater “victim” of sexual harassment, but I think he was just making a comparison. Whenever women do nude scenes, full frontal or otherwise, we don’t crack jokes about their breast or vagina size after the film comes out , especially during awards seasons. I get that he was the new guy and had to appear like he was okay with it–what would’ve happened if he had scowled or looked away when Clooney made that golf club/penis size joke at Michael? We would’ve been on here saying that if he doesn’t want to take the heat, stay out of the kitchen i.e. if he didn’t want us to talk about his dick, he shouldn’t have showed it to the world.
Which, initially I thought it was funny (and maybe he did too), but after a while it’s not funny anymore. And I can get why he was uncomfortable w/Charlize–she was all over him anytime they were together. Watch them at the Oscar Roundtable–she was hanging off his every word, and towards the end she kept saying amazing…to his impressions.
And imagine the kinds of questions that he has to make sure journalists don’t ask him i.e. questions about his dick.
And Kaiser, I didn’t think he was being whiny about not campaigning for an Oscar. I remember he gave an interview early last year, when he said that he got too wrapped up in the idea of being nominated for an Oscar (he said that almost everyone was telling him that he was going to the Oscars), so that when he wasn’t nominated, he was upset, and he realized that it’s not something to be upset about–so he just doesn’t want to campaign/get involved in that again. Why did you see it as whiny? I liked that he admitted that his ego got too out of control.
But here’s the thing, to me: as a man, Fassbender lives in a world where showing his dick is an option in a career of many alternatives. He *chose* a movie that required nudity and trades on that in GQ shoots, etc., and now that it has got annoying, he wants to move on. That’s fair, although, to call it harassment seems a little melodramatic.
But what he fails to recognize is that for many women in the movies, especially now, such a career move is her only option, and just because they aren’t talking about her vadge, doesn’t mean that every conversation about embracing her age/having kids/being beautiful isn’t on the same spectrum of what he’s talking about.
He got a taste of what it’s like to be an actress and doesn’t like it. I can’t fault him for that. It would have been nice for him to have made it a wider conversation and considered the problem as more than his, but he isn’t obligated to do so.
*sigh*
Said it better than I ever could. And that’s why I love you (yes, I know that you already know that).
Yes all of those actresses forced to pose for GQ, Esquire, Maxim and FHM whilst talking about how they don’t want people to focus on their bodies, i’m sure they were forced?
Also was the last time you heard a interviewer ask Jennifer Lawrence or Scarlett Johansson about their Vulvas?
That’s a straw man argument, it wasn’t put forth that women are forced to do those things, and that very position is why it’s so ridiculous for him to cry foul. He accepted payment for the role, no one forced him to do it, and now he’s fronting like he’s being HARASSED.
When was the last time either of those women showed their vulva in their films?
+1 I would totally be “right on” with him if he said, “I did it for the movie because the part required it, but I’ve moved on from that now and I wish not to discuss it.” I get what he is saying about the harassment part, I just think for him, the comments about it get old.
In the article, it literally says “and he appreciates the irony of a man enduring the sort of smut that women are, finally, a little bit protected from” and then later on they talk about actresses having a harder time at the drama school he went to because of objectification.
Thanks Kate. I’m glad he clarifies a little bit more in the article which I’d like to read for myself. He’s not the most articulate person but I do get his point. I’ll admit to feeling second hand embarrassment on his behalf during award season when the dick jokes got out of hand and I think Fassy is sex on legs. I don’t just like him because of his dong however, but because he’s a great actor with charisma to spare.
tl;dr. I don’t have a problem with his comments here.
If I was not currently trapped in the fluorescent-lit confines on my cubicle, I would stand up and applaud loudly.
Spot-on, T. Fanty.
But the light looks so good on you.
I would also add that a man will NEVER pay the same price as a woman in this case. Fassbender might get a “taste” of what it is like to be a woman in this industry, but he still is taken seriously as an actor and will continue to land choice roles for a good long time.
A woman in the same position might have a career for awhile, but she will also be the butt of jokes and be ridiculed for years to come. She will be treated as only a pair of tits. Take a look at last year’s incredibly sexist Oscars show as an object lesson. This does NOT happen to men.
Applause – ALL THE APPLAUSE.
If this was a woman (the broad from the blurred lines video let’s say) talking about how people objectify them because of their tits- you’d be singing a different tune. Its one thing to smile and play the game when someone is promoting a product…but they maintain their right to speak up and voice if it makes/made them uncomfortable. Double standard strikes again!
Don’t try to suck up to me after that Cumber comment above. Don’t think I haven’t got my eye on you….
*whistles innocently*
“Michael insists they are double standards in Hollywood as women would be protected from being ridiculed over their body parts, because it would be considered harassment.”
LOL, wut? Guy has a killer sense of humour … hardeharhar … SMH
I agree he has a point. I was just saying to a friend (after reading the ELLE piece) that I think he’s one of the most objectified actors in recent memory. EVERY article or interview just has to go there. I almost cringe if I see the interviewer is female cause I know I’ll feel second hand embarrassment as an otherwise reputable reporter will be reduced to silly, flirty, fangirl. Maybe it is flattering to him but it gets to a point where it’s just cringe worthy. And I remember that AWFUL MTV interview where the reporter just would not stop talking about his penis and Michael finally just walked away. I think he was good natured about it for a long time but for crying out loud, Shame was 2 yrs. ago. The jokes stopped being funny a long time ago. And they weren’t all that funny to begin with.
The worst was when a thoughtful piece about ’12 Years a Slave” is written and comments include “I’ll be your slave Fassy!” or “You can whip me anytime!” I mean, c’mon. REALLY?
Maybe women have been objectified so much that this turnabout seems fair play. But like someone else said, Kate Winslet has done alot of nudity, including full frontal, for her films. Yet, you don’t see her being shown pictures of vaginas and being asked who they belong to (like idiot mtv dude did with Michael) or have her boobs and privates talked about in every interview and joked about by her peers. (Imagine Jen Lawrence thanking her at the GGs for showing her glorious vag so she doesn’t have to? Or Leo Dicaprio saying he’s available to work with her tits again anytime?) No one discusses the “Winsvag” here. There’s no comments about wanting to pound her p*ssy into oblivion while there’s been many about wanting to ride the Fassdong. I’m as guilty as the rest for reducing him to a sexual fantasy.
Anyway, just agreeing he has a point and don’t blame him for getting a bit frustrated and pointing out the hypocrisy.
“Yet, you don’t see her being shown pictures of vaginas and being asked who they belong to (like idiot mtv dude did with Michael)”
What, someone actually *did* that?? (I’m assuming in his case the photos were dicks though) Ugh.
Yep! He was shown pics of different penises and was asked which actor they belonged to. Later, the same reporter kept making penis jokes at the MTV awards and Michael just walked away. Beyond embarrassing.
Sheesh. He must have soooo wanted to clock that guy (or just verbally thrash him)… simply walking away was an impressive display of restraint IMO.
I see both sides… I’d like to talk about his package more, to be frank. But I also am a huge McQueen fan and that movie is just everything. It’s so well done. And so I understand wanting to talk about the movie and not just about that one (long) shot.
If you’ve ever been pregnant I’d imagine it’s a bit like doing press junkets. People say the same 4 or 5 things to you all day, every day – “When are you due? What are you having? I bet you’re excited! Any day now!” To the point where you’d just like to punch strangers in the face. So I can see how hearing the same HIlarious jokes all the time would get a bit stale.
@Mark,
I don’t have reply buttons showing up, so I’ll post here.
You’re missing my point. Nobody is forcing anyone to do these things. But when Fassbender stops courting these photoshoots and decides that he doesn’t want to be objectified in order to market himself, there are still plenty of acting career options open to him. He can walk away from it and still forge a career. Women in media don’t have that luxury.
Forcing what? He’s not posing with his dick out or showing some bulge, people always bring it up even when he’s promoting a sci-fi movie.
Also I know men have more of a leeway in hollywood but do you think that a big actress could refuse to do a skimpy photoshoot? I doubt a woman will get blacklisted because she doesn’t want to do a GQ shoot.
It’s just a double standard that women can’t accept for some reason, he’s not saying he has it harder than most women but women do get protected from harassment. If someone started cutting into how an actress looked she’d get defended by people on the internet but if an actor gets called out for being fat and bald, he’s a guy he should get over it.
As a woman, I just want to cosign the hell out of all your comments, mark.
Um, women get shamed ALL the time for how they look. Constantly.
Some of us choose to take the high road and refrain from that behavior, but many men AND women criticize women for every little physical imperfection-cankles, a big nose, a square-shaped body, short arms, everything really. But if you spend enough time around here you’ll see that even some *coughs* alien-like and unconventionally attractive men (to put it nicely) are revered and worshipped by female commenters on this site, to the point where they have tumblrs and fansites devoted to them.
How often do you see men writing about their lust for an unattractive actress?
There are both balding and overweight dudes that women will openly admit to fantasizing about, like Philip Seymour Hoffman. Who is his female equivalent? Are men openly commenting about how badly they want to do it with Kathy
Bates?
EDIT: I love Kathy Bates-no disrespect to her.
She won’t get blacklisted, but there will be a falling off of her career. NOT TO SAY that Fassbender is a mediocre actor (before OKitt shanks me), but you can get a lot further with a lot less if you are a man. For a woman, if you aren’t willing to trade on your looks and have everyone asking you what it’s like to be a sex symbol, and (more often than not) pose in your underwear, the roles really drop off. You have to be Jody Foster or Meryl Streep to ensure roles that are defined by strength and not by gender or sexual attractiveness, and even those roles fall off once a woman hits a certain age.
And, I’m sorry, but women don’t get protected from the harassment. It’s just more insidious. All through this conversation, I keep thinking about the Seth MacFarlane boobs song from the Oscars. It’s always there. I’m not saying that he’s wrong to be bothered by it, but I do feel that it’s important to recognize that it’s coming from a place of privilege.
ETA: I’d choose Kathy Bates over PSH. He looks too sweaty.
@ Kitten:
“Are men openly commenting about how badly they want to do it with Kathy Bates?”
Her nudity in “All About Schmidt” was openly mocked on a Family Guy’s episode (of course). Granted, they (FG writers) also mocked PSH, but for his alleged bad hygiene (not for the fact he’s overweight).
T.Fanty:
After watching his amazing performance in The Master, I’m going with PSH — sweaty and all.
OKitten, I’d do it with Kathy–I love her.
“but you can get a lot further with a lot less if you are a man”
This precisely.
…and before people come out of the woodwork claiming that “men are just programmed differently” or (my personal favorite) “but men are more visual!”—–my point was not to discuss WHY things are skewed, simply to say that it is entirely more advantageous to be an unattractive man in today’s society rather than an unattractive woman.
@ Eve-Seth McFarlane probably has a small wang.
KIDDING.
….sort of.
Bravo @Mark.
Women aren’t more protected, even a little bit. Maybe more defended, but Emma Watson wasn’t protected from a pap trying to shove a camera up her skirt.
I don’t understand the fuss about it? So because he is a man he can’t feel objectified, regardless of whether women suffer more than men in that industry? To triviliaze what he has to say on the matter based on gender is actually unfair. At least he knows the feeling and that’s what matters?
I don’t give fassy a pass because when Coonley and all those other stars was talking about his dong he laugh and went along with it. He should of said something then about it being only for the movie. But he rode on that dong as far as it could take him. So now he wants to complain about it since he thinks has a better shot at a nom. He sounds whiny to me and bitter too about not getting a nom and not saying that he was offened.
Sure he was objectified, it’s a shame but nowadays everybody in this industry is objectified (read comments in a lot of threads and some articles and it’s obvious :)), Certain fans become hysteric when their favorite actor is bare-chested thus when he is naked is not surprising, he would have had to get ready for it even if it’s abnormal.
I completely see his point. It’s as bad as reducing an actress to her physical attributes. As a culture, we do that freely but it doesn’t mean it isn’t harassment.
Imagine how Jon Hamm must feel then.
I dont think he was talking about “us” as in the viewers of his movie but more on a professional level… as in those who interviewed him and were responsible for generating hype for the movie. No one has ever walked up to an actress at a red carpet event and said “Oh, and this movie features your vagina. It looked rather pinker than I expected but that’s a good thing, wink wink.”
He better not read the IMDB board for his movie Shame then. That’s basically all anyone talks about there.
I am going (un)dressed as Michael Fassbender tonight. I expect the media outlets/twitter to be in a flurry calling me out on it. After which, I shall issue and apology that says I am sorry that you find my Fassbenderness offensive and that you should hate the holiday, not the costumee.
btw – does anyone know what flesh-colored paint sticks to a cucumber? This acrylic keeps flaking.
I like your thinking. I’m going to duct tape a ginger labradoodle to my head, pull on my best maroon jeans and air of superiority and go as DUC. Now who wants to don a blonde wig and follow me around, looking weary?
(ETA: Before you ask, I’m not doing the jorts because I don’t have enough ginger leg hair. I didn’t plan my shaving well this week, evidently. Plus, who can really compete with the glory of knee-length denim?)
An old sponge and some two-sided tape could help out with you leg hair issue. It would be such shame to forego the jolts.
Mr. Rochester keeps “circumcising” my prop for his side salad – I don’t find it very funny.
@ J Eyre- You go as Fassy and I’ll go as Fassy’s Dong.
This is surely less offensive than the conjoined twins costume we were contemplating.
You’re on, OKitt. This way, we leave Eve to go as T. Fanty’s Katia.
I’m olive-skinned (that girl is almost translucent)!
Eve,
Maybe you can do a Russian-style white-face. Just beware the wrath of Anna.
Noooooooooooo!
*pointing* Hey Eve – look at that!
*hands Fanty white paint filled spray bottle*
OKitt, I ask this hesitantly because I am about to go to an elementary school and help out and I wouldn’t want to be in, well, let’s say “a state” when I arrive but… how, pray tell will you be “affixing” to me? *crosses fingers* pleaseohpleaseohpleaseohplease make her say vagina or vulva to attract tmz
All right, you asked for it:
http://www.pajiba.com/image/1240588892_julia_roberts_and_clive_.gif
Happy Halloween!!! Or not…
Okay, got the spray paint. Now how can I make Eve lose 100 IQ points? Maybe I’ll just force her to watch STiD, but with all the Cumberkhan bits cut out. That ought to do it.
*marches after eve with a FashionBitch-style bikini and a STiD DVD*
Well, there are so many costume details that need to be clarified here. Blonde & translucent—I’m pale enough to be Katia for Halloween but not skinny enough.
Fanty, you said blonde & weary. Would that be his publicist (exhausted because she has to go everywhere with him & that means no sleep for her) or Emily, the long-suffering niece who has to go with him on all social appearances to make sure he doesn’t walk into a propeller?
There is still one more blonde option, of course. If you need Wanda to go with you as DUC, I could just borrow one of your Owl hats, as I know you have a closet full of them.
@Eve,
Oh my God! That Julia Roberts gif is terrifying! It’s also hysterical (I think she’s awful). Does the mouth keep getting bigger?
Brava!
@ EsCon:
I think it’s getting bigger. I’d be terrified of getting a BJ from her if I were a guy.
Get some nylon stockings and cut a leg off, fill with polyester stuffing. Voila!
I still stan for Fassy. Not as smart as Hiddles, but smarter than Brad Pitt.
There isn’t a double standard like he is saying that there is. People have talked a girl having a big ass or breasts. Sofia Vergara, and Kim Kardashian are good examples of this. Futhermore, the way people talk abut a woman’s appearance it is like she is cattle.
I have to agree with Fassbender on this one. He laughed along with the all the jokes did the photo shoots, but I think it bothered him more than he showed. He handled it as nicely and maturely as he could without lashing out or getting really rude with some interviewers.
All of the jokes just took a lot away from the film. Carrie Mulligan was hardly ever mentioned for her performance by interviewers and the scenes between the two of them were so touching/sad. She was great in that film.
He’s not the only male actor to appear in the nude( Skarsgard, Hardy, Mortenson and more).
What it’s been 2 years and it’s still referenced.
Lots of you guys seem to have missed the part about how a patriarchal society hurts us all. Women are taught to put up with objectification, and men are taught that in order to be men, they have to parade their sexual power around – even if that’s not how they feel. Even if it objectifies them (which in this case, it does). Yes, Fassbender goes through life on the easiest setting – attractive, white male. Yes, females have it WAY harder. But it’s absolutely hypocritical to say “men have reduced women to T&A and that’s not okay” and to then say “it’s okay to reduce this guy to his penis though, because he’s got rich white male privilege.” It’s not okay to objectify anyone. Male or female. People are more than the sum of their physical parts. They have thoughts and feelings – which is obvious here.
And, last I checked people are allowed to change their minds about things, and to decide they think something is wrong, and to speak up about it.
Well said.
Looks like he’s also using the same tailor as his Bromantic partner.
Nice Tom Ford suit, Fassbender:-)
I don’t think there is anything wrong with what he said. It comes off to me that his words are now being taken in the wrong light simply because he isn’t the choice dong anymore.
Folks, if you can see a woman’s Vagina, you’re either In a 9th grade health class, or you’re a gynecologist.
The external parts are the Vulva, Labia Majora, Labia minora, and (my favorite part) the Clitoris.
As to Fassy: great actor with a big cock-a-doodle-doo.
@TheOriginalKitten
Yes but like I said people will defend them but people will rip on tom cruise for being short or jude law for losing his hair and not realize how hypocritical they sound. There probably are guys who wanna have sex with not so attractive women but if men starting swooning over an unattractive woman you’d see comment of women questioning why men find her so attractive.
@T.Fanty
No they won’t if they refused to the photoshoots they’d be fine most of the actresses that do the shoots have the power and the money to refuse they just want to get ahead because acting isn’t about talent it’s about names in magazines. Most of these actresses need it to cover up for the lack of talent, you rarely see Mia Wasikowska sprawled across a Ferrari because she doesn’t want to thats why.
That boob song was a joke about your point, that actresses have to get naked to be taken seriously but that might be the way I saw it. He just doesn’t want people commenting on his dick everytime he does an interview if it was Scarlett Johansson talking about guys making jokes about her boobs or Jennifer Lawrence talking about people calling her fat everyone here would be defending them with all their hearts but because it’s a guy he’s just whining
@ Mark,
You’re not listening to me. At no point have I said that he was whining. You might need to re-read my comments before you jump down my throat. Unfortunately, we’re not having a debate; you’re just shouting at me and getting my point wrong.
@T.Fanty
I’ve just got a different opinion i’m not angry just saying otherwise but still look at some of the comment just telling fassbender to shut up and take his pants off. Again if an actress was complaining about this and a bunch guys were telling her to shut up; ‘whip em out’ it would be on Buzzfeed or Jezebel calling out sexism.
I’m glad you mentioned people on this site constantly going on about male appearances and then turning around and acting all high and mighty when women are attacked. It proves your earlier point, about women being better defended and the hypocrisy of a lot of the people. I don’t even see why this is an issue, when you KNOW if it had been someone like Charlize Theron saying this, they’d all be leaping to defend her rights as a woman.
To be clear – jokes about boobs = fine, jokes about fassbender’s penis = bad? Because, as I understand it, the comments made by Charlize Theron and George Clooney were jokes. I imagine they could even stretch the point and say they were satirizing the attention paid to 2 small scenes in 1 film, in the same way you’re suggesting that the Oscars montage was satirical.
yes they were jokes but if you go online people are still talking about his dick two after it was in a movies for 5 seconds.
Seth sang the song once, most people on his blog will take a comment a guy said out of context or just not understand a joke(boob song) then take offense to it but when fassbender complains about the same thing he gets told to shut up
@ Janey:
That’s right. It’s ok to joke about boobs — if we find it offensive or simply not funny, that’s because we DO NOT GET IT, get it? It’s OUR fault, you see.
We’re humourless, stupid women who don’t understand Seth MacFarlane’s comedy genius!
The thing is – most people are saying that Fassbender has a legit complaint, but that complaint is not sexual harrassment.
Eve – Man, thanks for clearing that up – I had no idea the reason I find Seth MacFarlane mediocre and unable to understand the concept of satire was because I was stupid and humourless. That is a weight of my mind. Maybe, I can finally watch Family Guy and not want to shoot my self in the head with a nail gun. It’s a brave new world.
I have mixed feelings. I kind of get his point. Sure, he initially joked around about the topic, but it’s fair to assume that an actor who’d only recently started getting attention would feel the obligation to be a good sport. It also seemed like he slowly got more annoyed by the subject as time went on, which I also think is understandable. At some point, it feels like beating a dead horse. I’ll even forgive referring to objectification as harassment. I doubt the guy has ever taken a gender studies class, and a lot of people use “harassment” to refer to anything sketchy relating to sexuality.
I guess where I’m confused is why he’s continuing to talk about his penis. I can buy he didn’t have a lot of say over what interviewers asked him a year or two ago, but these days? He seriously can’t set limits with someone from Elle and say that he’s not interested in talking about nude scenes from past movies? No one ever asks him about abuse allegations, so it’s clear his people set some limits on interviews.
Oh, my. Poor Mr. Fassbender doesn’t like being objectified after his full frontal nudity film about being a sex addict. How very awful.
STFU & drop those drawers, boy. And make it quick.
;-D
God, I hate it when they talk. Why can’t they just stand there, waggle their dong around a bit, and look pretty?
Exactly! 🙂
( someone had to lighten things up a bit around here!!)
In the GQ interview Fassbender said he didn’t like dealing with the politics of Hollywood. So in this situation that involves his penis, I am sure he is not liking that was the only significant thing worth mentioning from the movie. Fassbender needs to learn how to deal with the politics of Hollywood and the choices he makes when he does decide to do nudity.
He can’t be oblivious to the fact that Shame was based on sexual addiction and that content of the movie would go over people’s heads. Also that his nudity maybe taken out of context of the movie because of his race and penis size. A person can be mature and understand why Fassbender did it but people can be stupid.
Also I can’t help but think Fassbender feels so comfortable about nudity because he is well endowed. Other male actors have done nude scenes but didn’t create so much of a buzz around them because they were average.
Overall Fassbender carried himself well with the penis jokes. I just wish he would develop a better social awareness so he can start dealing with the politics of his fame and the industry.
This quote has definitely made the rounds on all the gossip sites today. The bad thing is, it’s either taken out of context or misquoted all together. Michael never said he’s being sexually harassed or calls himself a victim but bloggers are spinning it like that for the sensational headline and for hits. At least Kaiser uses the actual quote where he states, “It wouldn’t be acceptable it would be seen as sexual harassment, people saying [to an actress], ‘Your vagina …’ You know?” He merely pointed out that an actress wouldn’t be repeatedly asked about her vagina the way he is about his penis without it looking like a form of sexual harassment. And he’s right. Female reporters, bloggers, and fans can go on and on about the Fassdong where MALE counterparts couldn’t name or go on and on about Jen Lawrence’s vagina without looking like pigs. That is all he’s saying. And the reporter brought up the whole issue to begin with. I doubt he would’ve said anything at all on the subject if she hadn’t started it.
Gossip blogs have a habit of sensationalizing/taking things out of context and targeting them towards people with short attention spans or otherwise bored people who won’t bother to look at context or read the entire article. It typically earns more views.
Dear Sir Fassbender, You’re not remotely has hot as Jon Hamm. So I won’t bother to talk about your bits. Or watch you in movies.
I’m so afraid now you’re not crushing on Michael Fassbender – I loved that you’d use any excuse to do a post about him – boooooooo. Don’t lose the love for Michael – he is amazing!
I think he’s absolutely right.In another GQ article he was much clear about it and the journalist makes a good point:
“Maybe there’s also something in Fassbender’s manner—the happy-go-lucky Irish charmer—that has reassured people that it’s okay. One of the things I will find myself wondering as I spend time with Fassbender is how true this is: whether his easygoing, chuckling demeanor at moments like this reflects a similar easygoingness inside—or whether, buried deep behind those sparkly eyes, there’s actually a whirlpool of fury and disdain and hurt at how it feels when you give your all for the type of performance that might define a career only to find it routinely reduced to a series of jokes about your genitalia, jokes that you are not only expected to tolerate but to laugh along with, and not only that but also to congratulate each new joker for his or her epic wit.
“It’s fun to a point,” he says of these situations he has been facing, “and after a certain point you worry that it kind of detracts from the movie. But there’s nothing I can do. I just have to laugh it off. I can. Pretty much. Because I take my work seriously but I can’t take myself too seriously. I’m in such a crazy privileged position—shit, this is the pinnacle of the dream when I was 17…. Nobody wants to hear really how difficult it is.”
There is also a story,from that article, that deserves to be quoted:
“Let’s consider a remarkable interview with him in The Sunday Times, a British newspaper known for a reasonably high tone and sturdy standards. Much of the article is about Fassbender’s anatomy, sex life, and sexual history, and in the published version he is depicted as someone willingly engaged in the back-and-forth. At one point he is quoted as blurting out, unexpectedly, “When in doubt, fuck.” It also includes a statement near the end from the interviewer, Camilla Long, that I believe is without precedent even in the giddy history of the celebrity profile:
I…feel quite certain that he would willingly show me his penis, given slightly different circumstances and a bucket of champagne.
“Wow,” says Fassbender when I recite this to him. “No, I haven’t read that one. Just as well, really.” But he does remember the interview. “The first thing she said to me was, ‘So, what does it feel like to have a big cock?’ That was her opening question.”
And as for her bold assertion about what he might’ve done?
“I don’t think I would touch her with a barge pole.”
These quotes explain his feelings very very well…
Wow… thanks for posting that!
OMG!! Especially that last part. I genuinely feel bad for him. That’s beyond the pale and purely assh*le behavior on her part, all the way through.
Oh geez, that Camilla person sounds beyond tacky and unprofessional.
She sound like a lot of people on here, quite frankly.
I would have preferred to hear that discussion to the, why are you guys talking about my peen I only showed it to you ugh this is such a double standard women don’t have to put up with this discussion. The first discussion is, to me, legitimate. I can understand how much it must suck to try and do the best job you can on a worthy project only to have everyone overlook that for the most sensationalist aspect of the situation. But he’s not talking about that. Instead he’s complaining about having to suffer something that women don’t, which is both oblivious and false. Or he could, you know, refuse to talk about it. Is that outside the realm of expectation, saying “no comment” or ” I don’t want to talk about that”? Why is it that we’re not expecting restraint if he’s complaining about how much people are talking about it. It does not exist independent of his reaction to it, or at least, not on any significant scale.
I agree with you for the most part, I wish he would’ve turned it into a discussion on what women have to go through every day, what he’s only had a taste of. But I also looked at it this way–women are objectified every single day in Hollywood. That’s a fact. But they aren’t usually objectified so blatantly and so publicly. They aren’t shown pictures of breasts to see whose they are. If someone had done something like that publicly, there would be an immediate backlash. I’d never even heard of half the stuff that interviewers had been saying to him.
Let me reiterate, I do think that he should’ve acknowledged that he only received a small taste of what women go through. But I think that a lot of people feel that because he is a man that he should just suck it up. And I don’t think he should.
@Virgilia Coriolanus: I don’t think he should “suck it up,” at all. I don’t think should have to shut up about it at all. If he wants to express his displeasure, I think that’s totally fine. I don’t think it’s totally fine when he compares his experience to that of women in order to emphasize a false point about how much worse he has it or that he’s special in his objectification.
I’d be more inclined to be angry about the whole, you’re a man you shouldn’t feel bad argument, because it is a stupid & offensive one, if he hadn’t brought up gender in such a way to begin with. It does suck that people were so gross concerning the situation, but IMO, not because of his gender. It sucks because it’s just a gross thing to do. And any backlash should occur because that’s rude, unprofessional, and should be checked in some form, not because he’s a dude.
I think it’s not really comparable in this particular situation because we’re not talking genitals to genitals. Women’s body parts are oversexualized anyway, and I don’t hear him complaining about how he can regularly go topless in public but the same isn’t true for a woman. He’s only complaining here because he didn’t like this particular discrimination, as he viewed it to be. He’s complaining because after a lifetime of enjoying privileges that come along with his appearance, he suffered some that weren’t so nice. And that sort of complaining is not admirable. I agree that he has no obligation to make this a part of a bigger discussion, but he went a step further than he should have in the opposite direction by making himself to be some sort of unique martyr, effectively silencing the genuine objectification and harassment of women in the film industry.
Again, what happened to him really sucks, and no one in their right mind should have considered this appropriate/funny/acceptable, but it happened. It happened not because he’s a man, but because people are gross and rude and tasteless.
Personally, I thought it was really stupid and juvenile that other actors made so many jokes about it, and I thought George Clooney’s joke on stage at the Oscar’s was just plain classless. Way to reduce an amazing performance in a pretty dark and disturbing movie. Clooney just loves to play the “everyman” role to point out how Hollywood takes itself too seriously – it’s his favorite thing to do. After a while, it gets old. He’s just George playing the same version of himself in every single movie and on the red carpet.
I think what’s being argued here isn’t the validity of Mr. Fassbender’s point, so much as it’s being treated as though it’s a revelatory idea by some. No, it is not acceptable to reduce anyone, male or female, to just their bathing-suit parts. It is in fact very inappropriate. But somehow it’s only a recent idea that it IS inappropriate to discuss a woman’s body, to reduce her to just a catalogue of body parts that someone would find sexually attractive. Take for example how many times Christina Hendricks and Scarlett Johansson have had to discuss their boobs on the red carpet – remember how unhappy Scarlett was when Mizrahi felt her up on the red carpet? Or how unhappy Hendricks and her husband were when Ryan Seacrest kept going on about her rack? For so long, women’s worth has been reduced to “is she #$%able, and no one blinks twice. Yet a man speaks up and says that it’s objectifying to be reduced to just a body part and everyone applauds him for speaking up? It’s just frustrating.
So Kaiser is no longer into Fassbender. I was wondering how long her crush would last.
Michael needs to have a long talk with Liam Neeson about being known for having an impressive Dong. There is a blog/show (by Kevin Smith) devoted to the subject. Women who have slept with him wax rhapsodic about it. Never once have I heard Neeson complain about it.
Well I think there’s a difference between one of your former partner’s waxing poetic about your d-ck than some interviewer who doesn’t know you. And Liam’s older, there’s not an interest in him (gossip wise) than there would’ve been if he’d been Fassbender’s age now. I’m sure that he’d be sick and tired of people talking about his d-ck too if it had come up as much. I’ve only heard him talk about it once, and that was years ago.
I’m with you Kaiser… I picked up the GQ article at the gym (mainly to ogle the pictures ) and then ended up reading the entire piece. The whole thing took most of the bloom off the Fassy Irish Rose for me. He seemed much less interesting and intelligent than I presumed he’d be based on his artistic choices. *sigh*
I think the fact that people in the press and beyond were and have been so preoccupied with his member says more about us as a society than it does about Fassbender’s behavior, or the choices he and his director make in this business. Now, I admit that I find his male anatomy fabulous, what of it I am familiar with, but we only saw it, those of us who saw Shame, for a few seconds, as Brandon went about to do what men do–most of whom have penises–everyday upon waking up. What’s to be hidden? That’s realism 101. The problem isn’t that the man shows his body in all its parts, but how we get all stupid about it, as if we ourselves don’t have genitals (or our partners) that we encounter far more than Fassbender’s. Perhaps the problem is more within ourselves than with any actor or actress who is called upon, in a role, to be naked and/or sexual on screen. If we grow up, then the controversy and nervous tittering go away.