Stranger Things actress Millie Bobby Brown on Tuesday slammed media scrutiny of her appearance, calling out scribes for “dissecting” her face, her body and her choices — a trend that, according to the 21-year-old star, affects every young woman in the limelight.
“This isn’t journalism. This is bullying. The fact that adult writers are spending their time dissecting my face, my body, my choices, it’s disturbing...Disillusioned people can’t handle seeing a girl become a woman on her terms, not theirs. I refuse to make myself smaller to fit the unrealistic expectations of people who can’t handle seeing a girl become a woman,” wrote Brown, addressing the recent flurry of criticism about her appearance.
In her post, the Damsel actress acknowledged that the issue is not just personal as several other young girls, who grow up under public scrutiny, have to face similar challenges. “I want to take a moment to address something that I think is bigger than just me, something that affects every young woman who grows up under public scrutiny,” she said.
Brown noted that she began her career at the age of 10. However, people refuse to accept that she is now 21 years old. “I grew up in front of the world, and for some reason, people can’t seem to grow with me. Instead, they act like I’m supposed to stay frozen in time, like I should still look the way I did on Stranger Things Season 1. And because I don’t, I’m now a target,” she wrote.
Brown cited some articles to justify her concerns. She highlighted how some of them have been penned by women themselves. “The fact that some of these articles are written by women? Even worse. We always talk about supporting and uplifting young women, but when the time comes, it seems easier to tear them down for clicks,” she added.
The Enola Holmes actress questioned the society’s increasing propensity for vituperation. “We have become a society where it’s so much easier to criticise than it is to pay a compliment. Why is the knee-jerk reaction to say something horrible rather than to say something nice? If you have a problem with that, I have to wonder—what is it that actually makes you so uncomfortable,” she wrote, urging people to treat young girls with the support and kindness they deserve.
“Let’s do better. Not just for me, but for every young girl who deserves to grow up without fear of being torn apart for simply existing,” concluded Brown.
On the work front, Brown is currently awaiting the release of Stranger Things Season 5, the final instalment of the Netflix sci-fi series, also starring Finn Wolfhard, Noah Schnapp, Caleb McLaughlin, Sadie Sink, Gaten Matarazzo, Joe Keery, David Harbour and Winona Ryder. Additionally, Brown has teamed up with Chris Pratt for Russo Brothers’s upcoming Netflix sci-fi film The Electric State.