Dating is hard, even for Superman!
In a recent and deeply unfortunate interview with GQ Australia, Henry Cavill contended that the #MeToo movement has him scared to date because he’s worried women will confuse flirting with rape.
“There’s something wonderful about a man chasing a woman. There’s a traditional approach to that, which is nice. I think a woman should be wooed and chased, but maybe I’m old-fashioned for thinking that,” Cavill told GQ. “It’s very difficult to do that if there are certain rules in place. Because then it’s like: ‘Well, I don’t want to go up and talk to her, because I’m going to be called a rapist or something,” he continued, raising the question of what, exactly, the actor classifies as flirting.
Does Cavill think he needs to literally chase women for them to know he’s interested?
He goes on to explain how rather than risk having a woman interpret his interest as rape, Cavill bootycalls ex-girlfriends he hates. “So you’re like, ‘Forget it, I’m going to call an ex-girlfriend instead, and then just go back to a relationship, which never really worked,’” the actor said.
“But it’s way safer than casting myself into the fires of hell, because I’m someone in the public eye, and if I go and flirt with someone, then who knows what’s going to happen? “Now? Now you really can’t pursue someone further than, ‘No’. It’s like, ‘OK, cool’. But then there’s the, ‘Oh why’d you give up?’ And it’s like, ‘Well, because I didn’t want to go to jail?'”
It isn’t that Cavill is afraid women are brainless enough to confuse flirting with raping — it’s that he’s taking women speaking out about their abuse as a personal affront, effectively gaslighting #MeToo victims and somehow turning them into aggressors. If Cavill’s flirting can be interpreted in any form as sexual assault, he should probably rethink how he flirts.
The actor issued an apology to Page Six Thursday as a result of his Twitter takedown.
“Having seen the reaction to an article in particular about my feelings on dating and the #metoo movement, I just wanted to apologize for any confusion and misunderstanding that this may have created.”
“Insensitivity was absolutely not my intention. In light of this I would just like to clarify and confirm to all that I have always and will continue to hold women in the highest of regard, no matter the type of relationship, whether it be friendship, professional, or a significant other. “Never would I intend to disrespect in any way, shape or form.”
“This experience has taught me a valuable lesson as to the context and the nuance of editorial liberties. I look forward to clarifying my position in the future towards a subject that is so vitally important and in which I wholeheartedly support.”
Of course there were also many who came to Cavill’s defense, alleging that the backlash to his statements merely proved his point. We’d be prone to giving Superman the benefit of the doubt if his apology seemed even remotely less than canned, and if he hadn’t in the past waxed poetic on what he deemed a “double standard” for catcalling.
