Current Events > Marvel star SLAMS shippers (aka horny women) who want his character to be gay

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2021/06/18/anthony-mackie-stirs-controversy-sam-bucky-romance/7750317002/

Anthony Mackie has stirred controversy on Twitter for his take on Marvel fans rooting for a romance between his and Sebastian Stan's characters.

During Thursday's episode of Variety's "Awards Circuit" podcast, Mackie, who plays Sam Wilson, AKA Falcon, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, was asked about fans "outright wanting Sam and Bucky (Barnes, played by Stan) to become a couple."

Mackie, who stars alongside Stan in the Disney+ miniseries "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier," replied that "in this day and age, so many things are twisted and convoluted."

"Theres so many things that people latch onto with their own devices to make themselves relevant and rational," he added.

Mackie went on to say that "the idea of two guys being friends and loving each other in 2021 is a problem because of the exploitation of homosexuality."

"It used to be guys could be friends, we could hang out, we could do this, and it was cool," he continued. "You would always meet your friends at the bar, but you cant do that anymore, because something as pure and beautiful as homosexuality has been exploited by people who are trying to rationalize themselves."

Mackie also said it's important for him to represent "a sensitive, masculine figure" and that closeness between two men doesn't always insinuate romance.

"Theres nothing more sensitive than having emotional conversations and a kindred-spirit friendship with someone that you care about and love," he said. "And you can call it a 'bromance' or whatever they call it, but it's literally just two guys who have each other's backs, and you don't have that now. You can't find that now."

He continued: "There's no bro-code between bros in 2021, and that's the thing. I think for a younger generation they don't understand if I say that Sam and Bucky have a bro-code that cannot be broken or altered or, in any way, shape or form, changed."

Mackie's comments garnered mixed reactions on Twitter, where many users took issue with him shutting down the idea that Sam and Bucky could become a couple.

Shipping is mostly done by straight females who are turned on by two hot guys getting it on: https://www.themarysue.com/fetishizing-slash/

And they are big fans of gay male porn too:

https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/when-no-one-looking-many-women-are-watching-gay-porn-n894266

The wildly popular online pornography site [redacted] which boasts over 115 million daily views published a finding that took sexuality researcher Lucy Neville by surprise: Women are responsible for more than a third of the sites gay male porn views.

The finding planted the seed for what would eventually become a book, Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys.

Neville interviewed and surveyed more than 500 women over five years for the project. Many of the women with whom she spoke said a lot of the problem they have with heterosexual porn is that they focus on the female body" without paying enough attention to men.

Gay porn gives an opportunity to look at the male form and male beauty and the male face when orgasming, Neville said.

What women liked most about male-male porn is versatility, and with heterosexual porn you are going to get penetrated eventually, and thats dull, she added. A lot of ways it can play out with men is more exciting, more experimentation, more open to negotiation.

But who can blame them?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Tc7MH5ZXbg

---

https://youtu.be/vwWEGQ2kK6A

Steven Yeun predicted this would happen

BabyRoxann posted...

He sounds like a douchebag

He isn't really wrong though.

Two male characters on screen and aren't sworn enemies? They shared one sentimental moment? THEY'RE CLEARLY MEANT TO BE TOGETHER FOREVER AND EVER, THEY'RE JUST MOMENTS AWAY FROM SWORDFIGHTING EACH OTHER.

I can understand why an actor would get frustrated with people who want to sexualize something that isn't inherently, or even remotely implied to be, sexual

shippers are fucking garbage and I wish they would cease to exist

---

MachineJaipur posted...

https://youtu.be/vwWEGQ2kK6A

Steven Yeun predicted this would happen

https://youtu.be/UfuWvgaAjQQ

---

MachineJaipur posted...

He isn't really wrong though.

Two male characters on screen and aren't sworn enemies? They shared one sentimental moment? THEY'RE CLEARLY MEANT TO BE TOGETHER FOREVER AND EVER, THEY'RE JUST MOMENTS AWAY FROM SWORDFIGHTING EACH OTHER.

Tbf this has basically been a thing since the epic of Gilgamesh

---

shippers are just having fun
its not taken seriously
usually
lets people have fun

---

Men are obsessed with lesbian porn so

---

I get how it could be annoying, and even insulting, to make an effort to portray what could easily have been played as the typical bad ass action bros as complex humans who actually deal with their complicated feelings and develop a close, emotionally open friendship just to have a bunch of people be like "ermagherd, when are they going to touch tips!?"

I dont see how anything he said is a slam on anyone or that could be considered controversial in the slightest.

---

Are they gay in the comics? No? Then they shouldnt be gay here.
---

He does have a point. In many ways, the fanatic parts of "shipping culture" are just promoting a different version the toxically masculine ideal that a man showing any kind of affection or emotional openness to another man must be gay. We should be normalizing the idea that men should be encouraged to show genuine care for each other in a platonic way. Though I do also understand the frustation on the part of the audience given Marvel/Disney's seemingly physical inability to have an openly queer main character, even if they're willing to tease it super hard with characters like valkyrie, but are too cowardly to actually commit to it.

---

I mean, he could have went about it WAYY more productively, but I agree.

Something like..

I understand why some fans would like to imagine us together romantically, but I find it important to project that two straight men can have a deep emotional bond without the implication of a sexual undertone.

---

DespondentDeity posted...

I dont see how anything he said is a slam on anyone or that could be considered controversial in the slightest.

Some on the twitter.com will burn you at the stake if you dare say that two men who exist in the same universe, or multiverse even, aren't gay for each other. especially if they're remotely fan favorites.

Reason and logic go out the window for those people

i bet this candyass has dicks in his mouth all the time

---

Holy shit, Mackie just dunked on em and earned that shield.
I support the gay community, but he's absolutely fucking right. It's offensive and borderline counter productive to paint this picture that two men can't be close friends these days without eventually going down on each other lol. That sounds like some goofy ass republican propaganda from the 40s lmao

Plus Bucky is already trying to clap Sam's sisters cheeks. I honestly don't know or care if Sam's sexuality has been established. I don't watch these movies for romance, gay straight or otherwise.

---

People did the same thing with Poe and Finn in the sequel trilogy. It's fucking annoying.

---

ScazarMeltex posted...

People did the same thing with Poe and Finn in the sequel trilogy. It's fucking annoying.

In fairness, weren't Poe and Finn's actors two of the people doing the same thing?

But yeah, I never got gay vibes from Sam and Bucky at all. After all, Bucky is still mourning the loss of his best twink Steve Rogers.


---

BettyWhite posted...

I mean, he could have went about it WAYY more productively, but I agree.

Something like..

I understand why some fans would like to imagine us together romantically, but I find it important to project that two straight men can have a deep emotional bond without the implication of a sexual undertone.

He doesn't have to spare their feelings.

Man's right

---

Can women please stop objectifying men? FFS
---

How many times are these actors getting asked these kind of questions, its ridiculous.

---

This happens with women too. And tbh, heterosexual friendships.

The idea of close friends is just not a thing. People always push for romance.

---

Ilishe posted...

He doesn't have to spare their feelings.

Man's right

Besides, the weirdos won't listen either way. They don't care about things like "logic" or "characterization" or "decency" in their pursuit of perverted fanfic crap.

---

ssj3vegeta posted...

Can women please stop objectifying men? FFS

Damn straight, we are some father's son!

---

I really don't get the appeal of shipping. Its dumb. Just accept the material as written.

Your weird fanfic about the Winchester Brothers being in a gay, incestuous relationship is gross.

Stop it. Get some help.

Gay men do shipping too. I don't think it has to be done officially, but it's insulting when they freak out over it.

The idea that two men are close friends, almost brothers is a foreign concept, same thing with a group of male friends that are close for years people think hmm maybe they are gay or there is a romantic tone.

---

God damn fujoshi at it again

---

I mean he's right, but it's not limited to just gay relationships. Every friendship doesn't have to end on a relationship or attraction. Except when there are 2 gay men in any media, it's like they just have to get together for whatever reason. It's not always the case, but it's significantly more likely than when there are 2 straight people of two opposing sexes

---

Shippers *can* be pretty annoying though, regardless of the character genders involved.
---

DespondentDeity posted...

I dont see how anything he said is a slam on anyone or that could be considered controversial in the slightest.

same.

---

Supernatural embraced it and even had nods to it in the show.

---

FF_Redux posted...

Supernatural embraced it and even had nods to it in the show.

That shit was disgusting and no ot is not hot for two blood related brothers to fuck each other. Incest is disgusting and the show embracing the fan meme was a bad choice.

---

RiKuToTheMiGhtY posted...

That shit was disgusting and no ot is not hot for two blood related brothers to fuck each other. Incest is disgusting and the show embracing the fan meme was a bad choice.

Bruh, calm down lol.

If it gets the sand outta your panties, the reference was the two characters being bewildered and grossed out that people wanted them to fuck.

---

RiKuToTheMiGhtY posted...

That shit was disgusting and no ot is not hot for two blood related brothers to fuck each other. Incest is disgusting and the show embracing the fan meme was a bad choice.

Slash fiction?

as in... Sam slash Dean.

do they know were brothers?

doesnt seem to matter

---

legendarylemur posted...

I mean he's right, but it's not limited to just gay relationships. Every friendship doesn't have to end on a relationship or attraction. Except when there are 2 gay men in any media, it's like they just have to get together for whatever reason. It's not always the case, but it's significantly more likely than when there are 2 straight people of two opposing sexes

So true, theres so many does shows that could have done better without romance to the point that oftentimes it ends up ruining the series and character dynamics entirely.

---

I can sympathize with him at least to some degree. Shipping is going to happen for everything, but the particular m/m shipping community that grew out of tumblr and tvtropes is very knives out about it and get really unreasonable about their headcanon to the point where their ships not getting fulfilled is treated like bigotry.


---

yusiko posted...

shippers are just having fun
its not taken seriously
usually
lets people have fun

Anyone familiar with the Ed's World fandom kan tell you how unhinged shippers kan get.

---

ZannoL posted...

You would always meet your friends at the bar, but you cant do that anymore

???

---

Looks like the majority is in agreement with Mackie so far.

Frolex posted...

He does have a point. In many ways, the fanatic parts of "shipping culture" are just promoting a different version the toxically masculine ideal that a man showing any kind of affection or emotional openness to another man must be gay. We should be normalizing the idea that men should be encouraged to show genuine care for each other in a platonic way. Though I do also understand the frustation on the part of the audience given Marvel/Disney's seemingly physical inability to have an openly queer main character, even if they're willing to tease it super hard with characters like valkyrie, but are too cowardly to actually commit to it.

Nailed it.

PoundGarden posted...

I support the gay community, but he's absolutely fucking right. It's offensive and borderline counter productive to paint this picture that two men can't be close friends these days without eventually going down on each other lol.

Yes.

Outspoken shippers are irrational and generally super fans, so it's likely one may encounter a greater frequency of them if they frequently interact with fans. As long as he's not bitching about a single person he once talked to, then it's a legitimate complaint.

BlackJackCat posted...

God damn fujoshi at it again

---

Bump

This is the same thing that happen with the Finn and Poe, and Bucky and Steve. Anytime there are good guy friends. People want them fucking. And it is like this is literally the height of toxic masculinity.

Fuck some people have even shipped the brothers from Supernatural .

---