'Peter Rabbit' Faces Criticism Over Allergy Bullying
"Peter Rabbit," an animated cartoon film by Sony Pictures, has recently received boycott threats and immense criticism after a scene in the movie offended advocates and doctors of food allergy.
The public outcry against the children's movie happened in one brief scene regarding Peter Rabbit's conflict with Mr. McGregor. For background context, the story of the movie revolves around Mr. McGregor's feud with the four rabbits, three of whom are Peter's sisters, namely Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton Tail.
The feud is about the rabbits' presence in Mr. McGregor's vegetable garden. The rabbits were benefiting from the garden until Mr. McGregor's relatives moved in, prompting the latter to try to remove the rabbits from the garden for good. The movie also made use of a lot of slapstick comedy in this feud, kind of how the cat and mouse were at each other's necks in the famous cartoon show "Tom and Jerry."
Get Our Latest News for FREE
In one scene, however, Peter and the rabbits made use of blackberries, as it is the weakness of Mr. McGregor since he was allergic to them. The rabbits continuously threw the berries at the gardener, causing him to "choke." The character ended up taking a shot of "EpiPen" to quell the allergic reaction.
As such, various advocates against "food allergy bullying" have spoken about the matter. "For them to mock something so serious is irresponsible and dangerous," said Dr. Purvi Parikh, an allergist with the nonprofit Allergy & Asthma Network. Dr. Parikh is also an allergist and immunologist at NYU Langone Medical Center.
Moreover, the Kids With Food Allergies Foundation posted in their Facebook account that parents must be cautious about showing the film to the kids without prior explanation of the "blackberry scene."
"Parents should be aware of this before your children see the movie so you can talk with your children about it," wrote the foundation.
Sony Pictures has since apologized for the scene, especially after it grew out of hand with the hashtag #BoycottPeterRabit appearing in social media.
"Food allergies are a serious issue. Our film should not have made light of Peter Rabbit's arch nemesis, Mr. McGregor, being allergic to blackberries, even in a cartoonish, slapstick way. We sincerely regret not being more aware and sensitive to this issue, and we truly apologize," the studio said in a statement obtained by CNN.
The company has also mentioned that it will be more careful next time, especially with cartoon productions.
