Mark Wahlberg has a new project coming out next week called Spenser Confidential. By the trailer, it looks like a pretty typical Mark Wahlberg action movie: lots of violence, splashes of humor and a good-guy-been-wronged-redemption theme. Winston Duke and Alan Arkin look like they elevate this mess, but it still holds no interest for me. Anyway, Spencer Confidential is why Mark was on Ellen DeGeneres’ show the other day, talking about what a great dad he is. In this case, he went to a father-daughter dance at his daughter’s school and while there, he forced the DJ to change a song that had some potty-mouth lyrics. Oh noes!
Mark Wahlberg is always looking out for the children!
Earlier this month, the Hollywood actor was able to participate in the father-daughter dance at his child’s school.
“I didn’t get one dance. And I told her we were going to do the whole big circle and I was going to go off,” Mark recalled during today’s all new Ellen DeGeneres Show. “And she said, ‘Dad, if you embarrass me, I will never talk to you again.’ But what she did do is she hung out with me.”
The actor continued, “She sat there on the edge of the stage, by the DJ. And then I’m sitting there with one other dad and I’m like, ‘This is not an edited version of this song. There are explicit lyrics being played at a school dance for girls and I’m like no good.'”
So what’s a proud papa to do? He’s going to speak up, of course!
“I told the DJ and he’s like, ‘Oh, I thought it was.’ I said, ‘What are you doing?’ I’m hearing F-bombs and this and that. Not okay.”
I realize that Mark would really appreciate it if we forgot all about who he was and possibly still is. So he pushes this proud papa narrative out front so we can swoon at his parental involvement. Unfortunately, for me, that simply reminds me that he’s just your good-ol boy misogynist who sees his daughters as his property and thinks peddling the idea that they should be locked up until their 30s makes him charming. I don’t doubt he loves his kids, but most of the time, I just want to mute him when he talks about them.
However, I don’t have a real problem with this story. For the most part, we don’t censor music or books in our family. If the subject (or the artist) is problematic, there’s a discussion and we’ll point out bad messaging or wording, but I don’t care about cussing in a song. Like, I’ll voice an objection over a lyric that calls aa woman a “ho” but not one that says “sh-t.” Still, I remind my kids that some people do object to that language and therefore they shouldn’t subject others to their music without approval. Mark’s daughter in question was Grace, who is 10, so yeah, a bunch of sixth graders and their parents shouldn’t have to listen to an unedited song if they don’t want to. And honestly, the DJ should have known better at a school dance.
Just a postscript but many schools in LA no longer have Father-Daughter dances because they tend to discriminate against the many, many families who fall outside the heteronormative definition. So most of the father-daughter (and they spell out *only* fathers and daughters are allowed) dances that still happen in Los Angeles are about one fox trot away from a purity ball.
Photo credit: WENN/Avalon Photos
I like how he specifies that he objected to the lyrics at a dance “for girls,” as if it would be totally unobjectionable if a bunch of ten-year-olds who aren’t girls were hearing f-bombs instead. I wouldn’t particularly care if my kids heard “fuck” in a song, but I agree that explicit songs aren’t appropriate for school events for preteens and the DJ should have known better.
Father-daughter (and mother-son) events creep me out a bit. I think parent-kid events are awesome and fun, but the emphasis on pairing off dads with their daughters and moms with their sons for stuff like dances is weird to me. Also, like you said, it totally leaves out families who don’t have a heterosexual couple in them.
Or families that are single parent families.
The “for girls” part jumped out at me as well. He can’t help himself even when he’s trying to tell an amusing anecdote.
I’ll defend the father-daughter events a bit. I do not like them if they’re school sanctioned, but other organizations where you have to opt-in tend to go okay (in my experience). My gym used to host them and it was a great way to get those two out of the house. Although, It was mainly for lower elementary aged kids and my daughter tended to ditch my husband for her friends asap. It would be great to see it be something other than dances– like a sport, etc.
My kids’ school calls it the Family Dance to avoid excluding anyone.
I think calling it a “family dance” is a great idea. That way a dad and daughter can go, but so can a dad and son, or an aunt and niece/nephew, or a family friend and kiddo, etc. – so many more options for kids and the important adults in their lives, however they’re connected.
I agree these kinds of events creep me out. I adore my dad, think he’s the best dad ever, but even as a kid, I would have been “Uh no, that’s gross, I don’t want to dance with my dad!!!”
At a school event, who wants their parent hanging around? NO ONE. Especially by 5th grade-
Also, honestly, if Mark W cured cancer I would still want to punch him in the face/throat. I cannot stand him as a person or an actor.
if she’s 10, she’s probably in 5th grade. my stepson is 10 and turning 11 soon and he’s in 5th grade right now. I definitely agree that they shouldn’t be playing explicit lyrics at a dance for 5th and 6th graders.
I’m glad that father-daughter dances weren’t a thing where I lived when I was a kid, as one of the few kids whose parents were divorced. I didn’t see my dad, and it was bad enough being forced to make Father’s day gifts for my uncles.
The only thing I can say about his new movie is that the cop who arrests him in the trailer is my husband’s cousin, which is pretty cool!
Of course he did, because he’s a good catholic father… ex-pants dropping, expletive using, violent racist. That said of course they shouldn’t be listening to the expletive version of songs at that age, the dj should know this is a kids party, i don’t think he need a gold star for basic parenting
On the topic of not dating until 30, I got one of those shirts for my baby the other day “Daddy says I can’t date until I’m 30”. Grosss!! Strait to donations – if I wasn’t so annoyed by wasting baby clothes or afraid of the glitter print’s chemicals I’d burden it in the fireplace.
Mark Wahlberg: Low-life, stupid, vile thug. That’s all I got.
Don’t forget despicable douchebag & criminal. A nasty piece of work.
I’ll add: Ugly, bad skinned, twerpy guy who tries to look taller.
He’s such a d-bag and no talk about Catholicism or his kids will change my mind. I don’t object to parents not wanting their 10-year-olds listening to expletives all the time. I just question why he keeps telling these stories and why oh WHY there is such a thing as a father-daughter-dance??? WHAT is that? We don’t have that stuff in Germany. Yikes.
Yeah, I can’t stand him either. I think he’s honestly… just human garbage. There’s no coming back from the horrible things he’s done, and he’s never acted even believably sorry. He’s an egomaniac, he’s a hot head, and he’s a douchebag.
I will say, I do agree that excessive swearing or super super sexual lyrics are a bit much for a 10 year old child. I don’t know why they wouldn’t just play a censored version or skip it for that specific age group.
The father daughter dance thing is weird to me, too. Like, I assume the point is for parents to connect more with their kid who isn’t the same gender. But it does have creepy undertones in modern society I suppose. I wouldn’t have wanted to take part as a kid, and I got along perfectly well with my dad. It’s just so cheesy and performative – you shouldn’t need a specific event to make time for bonding with your kids.
It just screams date to me. These dances can be fun parties for kids or they will most likely have romantic undertones for teens. The former wouldn’t be specifically for fathers and daughters. The latter SHOULDN’T be! Are there mother-son dances? I assume not. Because mothers also don’t give away their sons at weddings. Traditionally speaking. It’s just weird.
He was all over Twitter on Wednesday showing off his ashes (which, according to the Gospel, you’re not supposed to do). All I could think of was the elderly Vietnamese gentleman he blinded, or the African-American schoolgirls he screamed the N word at.
This!! He’s a rage & hate fueled creep.
He’s terrible.
A DJ should know better than to play an explicit song at a kids event.
Imma get pummeled for this, but most parenting done loudly in public is performative.
Can you please say it louder for the people in the back?
+1
Ha ha 100% TRUE !
MW is one of the people who I try to boycott. I haven’t seen any of his movies in years. But I started watching McMillions (the McDonald’s monopoly scam documentary on HBO) before I knew he was a producer. It is so good.
As for the dance and the dj, if it was a school dance, I think it’s the schools job to monitor the music. But yeah, if you play explicit songs for 10 year olds, somebody is going to get offended.
He’s a racist, violent POS. He beat a Vietnamese man bad enough to blind him in one eye… then years later said that he forgave himself for assaulting the man. He. Forgave. HIMSELF.
When he was younger, he and some friends yelled racial slurs and threw rocks at school kids. Oh, and he threw rocks at them the next day, too.
Then he kicked a man multiple times in his face while his bodyguard held the man down.
He’s awful.
I’m sure those kids will be better citizens for the rest of their lives for not hearing that one song that one time. 🙄
Never been a fan of his ! I fail to understand why he get roles along some acclaimed actors ..he acts with his same expression in every dam movie ..end of the day it’s all dollar signs to him with zero substance to the role.
I can’t stand him. I’m baffled by his acting career.
I’m baffled also. Everything about him is basic and I can’t figure out how he gets roles.
He’s a horrible actor. I don’t understand how he gets paid millions for his bad acting skills. I just don’t get it.
What I don’t understand – as a Brit on the other side of the pond – is why extreme and gratuitous violence seems to be okay, but females showing their shape and the word ‘fuck’ are treated as the pinnacle of immorality. Why?
I’ll take a stab (pun intended)…
Because extreme and gratuitous violent acts reward testosterone-fueled areas of the brain. Much like firing guns, fireworks, and explosions. It fits very neatly into the American toxic-male-psyche that has taken generations to cultivate.
Females showing their shape and any vocabulary that hearkens to sexual activity runs counter to a few priciples held by the aforementioned American toxic-male-psyche:
1) America’s long establish Puritanical heritage upheld by men in power
2) the madonna-whore complex
3) male relational ownership of said female shape
4) knowledge that, if the relational male with ownership has had impure thoughts about the female shape, violent and aggressive jealousy may erupt when the relational male realizes other males may have the same thoughts about the owned shape property
I could go on but would rather save room for others to contribute.
Thanks, Larelyn. That’s highly…depressing
NO.
Idk if it’s cultural but around my community parents are excited for the father-daughter dance or mother-son doughnuts events. Daughters are excited to get dressed up and when I see black fathers participate it’s about representing an image that doesn’t get seen a lot. Just because it says father daughter doesn’t mean a mentor or uncle etc can’t participate. Also, lyrics for school dances are usually censored. I’m shocked that the school didn’t make sure
Lord forbid she hears a lyric that causes her to beat an Asian man almost to death.
Mark pretending to have morals is funny.