French film icon Brigitte Bardot has criticized the #MeToo campaign against sexual harassment, saying many actresses complaining of harassment are "hypocritical and ridiculous."
"In the vast majority of cases they are being hypocritical, ridiculous, uninteresting. There are many actresses who flirt with producers in order to get a role," Bardot said in an interview with the French magazine Paris Match.
Her remark has sparked controversy online, with many Twitter users condemning the actress, and some even suggesting that she has personal issues.
Seriously, there is something different a out French women.
— Paulina Poli Palian (@p_palian) 18 января 2018 г.
Or is it a Stockholm syndrome?
Of course. Brigitte's whole life was based on being sexually appealing to men. That is all she knows. She doesn't understand the feeling when a woman doesn't want to be stared at or touched without our consent.
— 🌹Slide Tackle🌹 (@drikalovesramos) 18 января 2018 г.
Can you say how? Discrediting people like this is one of the main reasons women are afraid to speak out. They are afraid they will be seen as “an attention seeker set on destroying innocent men’s career.”
— The Bull Moose (@TheBullMoose2) 18 января 2018 г.
Let's be serious this person become famous cause of sex not talent or substance so of course she well attack the movment
— Almur (@Almur66057609) 18 января 2018 г.
#BrigitteBardot has #nothing better to do. #medieval #ideas. She basically claimed #women do in on #purpose. #pointless person. I stand with #metoo
— MLG (@MLG62203582) 18 января 2018 г.
Others called upon the actress, known as an avid advocate of animal rights, to show a little more respect and kindness for victims of sexual harassment.
Bardot respects animals, not humans
— IrishEyes 🍀👀 (@NYCBroadwayBaby) 18 января 2018 г.
Please ignore her hatespeak
In the interview, Bardot also said she was never the victim of sexual harassment and that she "found it charming when I was told that I was beautiful or I had a nice little backside. This kind of compliment is nice."
Some users also suggested that Bardot should not judge others by herself, especially regarding such a sensitive issue as sexual abuse.
Just because u found it “charming” when men told u that u had a nice ass, doesnt mean other women do. Some women want to be seen for more than their looks. A woman who is known for only just that wouldn’t understand
— Michael (@stellarskye5) 18 января 2018 г.
Bardot’s comments came after another French film star, Catherine Deneuve, and 99 other French women raised their voices against the #MeToo campaign, likening it to "puritanism" and arguing that it was fueled by a "hatred of men" and stymies sexual freedom.
"This urge to send men to the slaughterhouse, instead of helping women be more autonomous, helps the enemies of sexual freedom," Deneuve said last week in a column for Le Monde.
Later, the actress apologized to women who became victims of sexual assaults.
READ MORE: #MeToo Positive, but It 'Doesn't Tell Sex-for-Roles Exchange From Real Violence'
The anti-harassment campaign started as a reaction to scandal around Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, who has been accused by more than 80 women working in the film industry of sexual harassment and other sex-related abuse. The scandal has set off a flurry of similar accusations against powerful men around the world.
A great number of women have shared their own experiences of sexual assault, harassment, or rape on social media under the hashtag #MeToo.
