Benedict Wong has slammed the homophobic bullies responsible for the online harassment of his 16-year-old Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness co-star Xochitl Gomez.
Gomez plays a character called America Chavez, a hero with the ability to jump between dimensions. In the comic books, Chavez is an openly gay character, leading many to assume the same would be true of her MCU counterpart. While studio boss Kevin Feige has since confirmed the movie will be truthful to Chavez's character, it's not a massive part of the story. Go figure.
Despite this, Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness does contain a small amount of LGBTQ+ content, enough to have denied it a release in Saudi Arabia.
Gomez told AsiaOne: “It’s a big deal that America is in this movie. It’s just huge. And I’m just so happy that Marvel has stuck to it and kept the scene in there. And it’s just pretty crazy that I get to be the one who plays America.
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“Although, yes, my name may be circled within hate and stuff but it’s okay.”
The hate Gomez references has been directed at her online by predominately by "fans" who believe its her fault the movie has been banned in Saudi Arabia. There are, of course, other warm-hearted chums of humanity who saw an opportunity to grab a pitchfork and harass a teenage girl simply because they had nothing better to do.
Wong, who plays Sorcerer Supreme Wong in the upcoming movie, has now hit out at the relentless trolling his young co-star has been subjected to.
“It’s not okay," he said. “We have to all collectively understand that... she auditioned aged 13 and she joined us aged 14, one of the youngest actors to join the MCU in a film of that magnitude. You know, she’s just a young girl playing her role and full praise for that.
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“So there’s a real level of shame for all those trolls that are cowards not to actually put their face on, and they should feel a deep shame of what they’re doing. Let’s all just play nice. Let’s all just enjoy... what we are representing."
He continued: "It’s sad that fans in that country won’t get to see this as yet. But all we are doing is radiating representation, voicing the voiceless. And that’s all that we can do — represent people so that they can be seen.”
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits UK cinemas this Thursday, May 5.
Topics: Marvel, Disney, TV And Film