A few days back, fans of the Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson modern classic "Zoolander" were excited to see the hilarious new trailer for the upcoming sequel, but it seems that not everyone laughed at the end, as advocate groups for LGBT causes have called out Benedict Cumberbatch's "Zoolander 2" character transphobic.
According to The Guardian, there's a new online petition calling for a boycott of the film following the revelation of Benedict Cumberbatch's "Zoolander 2" character, All, an androgynous and seemingly gender-fluid model who becomes the butt of the joke in the recently released trailer.
"If the producers and screenwriters of Zoolander wanted to provide social commentary on the presence of trans/androgyne individuals in the fashion industry, they could have approached models like Andreja Pejic to be in the film," reads the boycott petition regarding Benedict Cumberbatch's "Zoolander 2" character, via The Mirror. "By hiring a cis actor to play a non-binary individual in a clearly negative way, they film endorses harmful and dangerous perceptions of the queer community at large."
"Cis," short of "cisgender," refers to a person who identifies with the gender they were assigned by birth, as opposed to feeling themselves born in a gender different that their biological one.
The online petition against Benedict Cumberbatch's "Zoolander 2" character, created by Sarah Rose, has already reached more than 11,300 signatures from the 12,000 it was set to have.
Cumberbatch, fresh off an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of gay scientist Alan Turing in "The Imitation Game," has been a strong supporter of LGBT causes in the media for quite a while, so accusations that Benedict Cumberbatch's "Zoolander 2" character could be seen as transphobic more than likely don't agree with the "Star Trek: Into Darkness" actor.
Nobody from the film, including the "Doctor Strange" actor, Stiller or Wilson, have made any comments about the recent backlash of Benedict Cumberbatch's "Zoolander 2" character - you can watch the trailer below and judge for yourself.
