Sean Martinez | Freelancer
On Sept. 9, 2018, Netflix introduced the world to a new style of thriller and suspense with a show called “You”. The main character, Joe Goldberg, falls in love with a woman named Beck and makes it his mission to become her boyfriend. But in doing so, he follows her, sees her friends as obstacles and obsesses over her.
While the show captivates its audience, it also sheds light on the social issue of stalking. The show tackles this subject by telling the story through Joe’s perspective, allowing viewers to understand his actions; this has sparked some controversy because it’s easy for people to use this as justification for his actions. The bigger issue, though, is people romanticizing Joe’s character.
Following the show’s success, posts on social media comment on the physical attractiveness of Penn Badgley, the actor who plays Joe. One tweet from @MalikaPlays read, “kidnap me pls,” to which Badgley, under the twitter handle @PennBadgley responded, “No thx.”
However, the issue does not stop with “You”; it continues with an upcoming movie on Ted Bundy’s life: “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile.” Scheduled to be released sometime in 2019, the movie trailer highlights the fact that Bundy was a conventionally attractive man, using his charm and charisma to sway people away from the belief he was a serial killer. Zac Efron being casted as Ted Bundy has many people split on the decision.
Humanities and English major, junior Never Retallack, believes that casting Efron as Bundy is “… pushing that charismatic factor a little too far.” She goes on to explain that this choice is “… taking away who Ted Bundy really was (because) it’s Zac Efron playing him.”
On the other end of the spectrum, Jasmine Morrow, a junior English major, thinks casting Efron is “more realistic than anybody else because of how attractive he is and he has a charming side.” With Morrow’s perspective, in order for the movie to capture the accuracy of Bundy, it makes sense to cast someone as idolized as Efron.
Regardless of the controversy, it is possible that Efron will attract many people to this movie. The more people who watch it, the better odds are that people will receive the message. We are entering a new era of television where serious issues are presented on entertainment platforms. Shows like “You” and Netflix’s Jan. 24 release centered around Bundy titled “Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes” attempt to illuminate, enlighten, and educate audiences on the scope of these topics. But the controversy surrounding them and the tendency for some to warp the stories and misunderstand their messages can lead to the glorification of problematic and malicious people.
Contact the author at martinezs17@wou.edu
Photo courtesy of mylifetime.com
