What Did Shakira Say About The 'Barbie' Movie?
"My sons absolutely hated it," the 47-year-old "Acróstico" singer very frankly said in an interview with Allure. "They felt that it was emasculating. And I agree, to a certain extent."
"I'm raising two boys. I want 'em to feel powerful too [while] respecting women," the "El Jefe" singer continued. "I like pop culture when it attempts to empower women without robbing men of their possibility to be men, to also protect and provide."
The mom-of-two added: "I believe in giving women all the tools and the trust that we can do it all without losing our essence, without losing our femininity. I think that men have a purpose in society and women have another purpose as well. We complement each other, and that complement should not be lost."
Social Media Reactions
Social media understandably had a lot to say regarding Shakira's comments! "Did she not watch the ending of the movie where the Kens finally got their respect and their purpose was showcased?" asked one person on X, formerly Twitter. "So she took 2 YOUNG BOYS (no older than 12) to a movie based on a popular doll aimed and targeted towards young girls and women, and was surprised when said young boys felt emasculated, on top of HER not understanding the message?" questioned another.
"Oh she tanked," wrote one X user. "This is an unfortunate take and definitely not a point of view I thought Shakira would have," commented one fan. "She really decided to set herself up for disaster with this horrendous take," wrote another, followed by the crying emoji, as another concurred: "Kinda embarrassing for her."
"As a fan I'm disappointed. It's such a 1950s MAGA outlook," they added. "Weird! I didn't know Shakira was tone deaf!" exclaimed another fan, while many others commented on the "anti-feminist" remarks.
"Twitter so funny tbh. The people complaining about Shakira, [claiming] she's anti-feminist for her take, but are the same people whose feminism starts and stops online," wrote one user. "First Pharrell and Chad are beefing now you mean to tell me that Shakira is anti-feminism? And not even feminism feminism but base-level Barbie telling y'all mini-misogynist kids to respect women anti-feminist? Can celebrities go back to being quiet!" exclaimed another.
Many others did, however, see Shakira and her sons' sides. "She is right," agreed one fan. "The film was emasculating. The ending doesn't change that," observed another X user, while many others said the Kens didn't get their respect at the end of the movie, hence seeing where Shakira and her sons were coming from.
"They went back to living on the streets and having no voice or representation in government. How did they get their respect?" asked one user. "Got their respect? They weren't allowed to participate in society," said another, as someone else concurred: "They didn't get their respect, they were pitted against each other and disenfranchised, they didn't get to vote on their future, and went back to being 2nd class citizens."