Women-Only Screening For 'Wonder Woman' Draws Flak

The latest in a series of Warner Bros. movies based on DC Comics characters, ‘Wonder Woman’, received backlash from the men of Austin, Texas, after Alamo Drafthouse, a movie theatre chain decided to have a women-only screening for the film. The men were aghast and wondered if they would get to see the movie.

The announcement issued by the theatre company said, “Apologies, gentlemen, but we’re embracing our girl power and saying 'No Guys Allowed' for one special night at the Alamo Ritz. And when we say 'People Who Identify As Women Only', we mean it. Everyone working at this screening — venue staff, projectionist, and culinary team — will be female."

Morgan Hendrix, creative manager of Alamo Drafthouse, told The Washington Post that the project could expand to other locations around the country. Their tickets for the two screenings they have arranged were sold out within an hour of going on sale.

“It’s sexist and bigoted,” Facebook user Evan Johnson commented, receiving nearly 40 reactions, more than half of which appeared to be laughing at Johnson’s comment. “If women are entitled to exclusivity and a sense of togetherness, then so are men,” Greg Martin, another user, said.

Twitter was most flooded by the criticism and thus came Don Cheadle, the director of the movie, to justify the movie theatre’s stance. He spent his Tuesday morning replying to multiple criticism that surfaced that were condemning the screening.

“An all-women screening of Wonder Woman pits men against women? How?” replied Cheadle to a tweet that criticised the screening as double standards and against equality.

“You guys really have to stop with this stupid analogy. It's apples to carburettor parts.” Cheadle replied to a sexist remark that said feminists would protest if a male only screening was organised

Some men protested "I hope someone sues, this is discrimination based on sex," while some were hoping for a male-only movie.

Out of the 130 superhero films and comics that have been produced since the 1920s, only 8 have female leads. Nonetheless, there were some who appreciated this move and said that they would watch the movie twice just to support this cause. Another suggested that the tickets should be sold at a price 85% of the actual price to mark the wage gap between men and women. A series of tweets by the director indicated towards the disparity in the work force at all levels -- acting, technicians, along with female representation in media.

Jagriti Sharma Is An Intern With SheThePeople.TV