The Issue? Moss is a Scientologist.
The 2018 Golden Globes weren’t just about celebrating the careers of some of Hollywood’s biggest stars. The black dresses, red carpet interviews, and many of the acceptance speeches brought attention to women’s rights and serious sexual harassment issues. While many of the women are being praised for their protesting efforts, viewers are saying some did not do enough. People are calling out Elisabeth Moss, who won Best Actress in a Drama TV Series, for being a hypocrite.
Here’s the deal: Elisabeth won the award for Best Actress for her role as Offred in The Handmaid’s Tale. In case you’re not familiar with the show, it’s a feminist story by Margaret Atwood about a dystopian future where a woman’s only role is to have children, and they are repeatedly raped in order for that to happen. The Handmaid’s Tale is a story about sexual assault, abuse, and the power of men — and Offred is an important character who stands for women’s rights.
So what’s the issue? Elisabeth is a Scientologist, a religious organization that has been called out for years for their alleged mistreatment of women. According to some reports, ex-members have accused the church of allegedly pressuring them to get abortions (a claim that has been denied on the Scientology website). This, as you can see, seems to be in direct conflict with Elisabeth’s role as Offred.
Some people feel that it’s hypocritical for Elisabeth to play Offred to begin with, and even more hypocritical for her to win awards for her work. They also feel that it’s insulting for Elisabeth to wear black to the Golden Globes in solidarity of women everywhere, and for her to speak about the #TimesUp movement in her acceptance speech. They definitely aren’t afraid to speak up about it:
This certainly isn’t the first time Elisabeth has been called a hypocrite for playing Offred. Viewers have brought it up many times, and Elisabeth has even answered a question about it in the past, defending Scientology and stressing its importance to her.
Elisabeth has also been the subject of criticism for saying she didn’t think of the show as a feminist story, but rather a human story. She did apologize for her statement, but it did little to appease fans.
Some people aren’t just angry at Elisabeth, they’re also concerned for her. The church of Scientology is surrounded by controversy for many reasons and is often referred to as a cult. Some viewers are concerned that Elisabeth is trapped there:
For what it’s worth, Elisabeth did attend the ceremony in a black gown as a sign of her recognition for the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, and she did give a powerful speech. But for many viewers, this issue is one that isn’t going away any time soon.
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