Oscar-Winner Cate Blanchett Slams ‘Trigger Warnings’
Superstar says we shouldn't fear controversial art that makes us think
Cate Blanchett doesn’t steer clear of tough conversations.
Blanchett, who stars in the upcoming fantasy film “Borderlands,” recently lashed out at so-called “trigger warnings” added to content both old and new.
We recently saw such a trigger placed before “Blazing Saddles,” one of the most celebrated comedies of the 20th century. The Mel Brooks satire deploys the “n-word” to skewer racists and bigots.
Blanchett spoke to The Sunday Times about the topic, using her 2022 film “Tar” as a starting point.
That film cast the Oscar-winner as a conductor caught up in a Cancel Culture-style attack. The film featured one sequence that went viral on social media. Blanchett’s character dressed down a woke student in so uncertain terms.
Now, Blanchett is cheering on challenging stories like “Tar.” We need more of that, she suggests.
“You don’t want a film about which everybody is going to say, ‘Well done.’ When people debate it it’s absolutely thrilling.”
She pointed to a larger problem that extends beyond the arts.
“We are terrified of tough conversations… but we need them. We talk about radical candour, but when there’s a trigger warning in front of something you are implying that there is a lack of mutual respect or that the subject hasn’t been properly interrogated….”
“It may offend you,” she said. “It may challenge you. You may laugh uproariously. You just don’t know, but you are going to surrender to what is coming.”
Disney+ placed trigger warnings before classic animated tales like “Dumbo” and “Peter Pan” for outdated cultural mores. Colleges teem with trigger warnings placed before all manner of subjects.
UPDATE: The Metropolitan Opera just added a “trigger warning” to the classic production of Puccini’s “Turandot” due to “racial stereotypes.”
Few artists have echoed her thoughts on the subject. Most steer clear of Cancel Culture and woke bylaws, afraid to face cancellation themselves. The few that have spoken out have been directly impacted by it.
Kevin Hart skewered the far-Left mindset after he lost an Oscars hosting gig due to older, problematic jokes.
“If somebody has done something truly damaging then, absolutely, a consequence should be attached,” Hart said. “But when you just talk about… nonsense? When you’re talking, ‘Someone said! They need to be taken [down]!’ Shut the f— up! What are you talking about?”
Comic actress Sarah Silverman lost a juicy movie role because she once donned blackface to expose bigotry. Later, she began warning us about Cancel Culture despite previously embracing the woke way of life.
Blanchett’s next film may not spur difficult conversations. That isn’t the point.
“Borderlands,” in theaters Aug. 9, is based on the widely popular video game series. The film co-stars Blanchett, Jack Black, Kevin Hart and Oscar winner Jamie Lee Curtis.
