People on Twitter react harshly towards Waithe, who executive-produces two episodes of the series, with one writing, 'Lena waithe is sick and twisted for this.'
- Apr 12, 2021
AceShowbiz - Amazon's "Them" has drawn backlash against producer Lena Waithe. Following the premiere of the new horror series, Waithe was accused of appealing to "hate crime fantasies" as the series featured some scenes depicting racist violence.
In a piece published by Los Angeles Times, the review blasted the limited anthology series which is set in the 1950s, centering on a Black family who moves from North Carolina to an all-white Los Angeles neighborhood during the period known as The Great Migration. According to the piece, "the most shocking horror lies in the in its more realistic scenes of racist violence, which are arguably more disturbing than the vivid images in its recent predecessors."
On "Them", a young black child was murdered while his mother was being sexually assaulted in its fifth episode. Not stopping there, two black people's eyes were gouged with hot pokers.
Following the Los Angeles Times' article, people on Twitter reacted harshly towards Waithe, who executive-produced two episodes of the series. "Lena Waithe is unwell. Her art is telling me things I don't like. Where did she grow up, go to school, hang out with? What inspires her art? These projects she's putting out....eh," one user tweeted. "Lena waithe is sick & twisted for this," another person added.
Someone else chimed in, "When I log on and see Lena Waithe trending because y'all are dragging her to the depths of hell, where she belongs." Another tweet read, "To be clear this is peak Lena Waithe. She seems incapable of being attached to projects about Black people without reveling in Black pain--especially when she is in charge. Play on the name, use one of the same actresses but expressly torture Black bodies."
Comparing "Them" to "Get Out", another person wrote, "everyone called Them a Jordan Peele knockoff, but it's WORSE than that, because Jordan Peele makes horror and Lena Waithe makes trauma porn." Echoing the sentiment, another user added, "Once again we have a piece of media that believes Black trauma porn is Black horror. This is why Peele is a top dog. He knows how to blend Black horror & social commentary effortlessly. Twice Lena Waithe has proven she has no business screenwriting Black stories."
"I am again asking how do we protect ourselves and our communities from Lena Waithe," one person penned. Also criticizing "The Chi" creator, someone said, "white people are not the only people who desire (actively desire, consciously & unconsciously) to witness black suffering. dramatized and real. simulated & stimulating. lena waithe get therapy challenge."
Waithe has yet to comment on the backlash.
