Netflix has apologised for using "inappropriate artwork" for one of the latest films to come to the streaming service, Cuties, after an outraged response of social media.
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The coming-of-age movie was described by the director, Maimouna Doucouré, as aiming "to highlight how social media pushes girls to mimic sexualised imagery without fully understanding what lies behind it or the dangers involved". However, several fans pointed out that instead of using the original poster, Netflix was marketing it with different cover art.
The original poster for the French film Cuties
One person shared a photo of them side-by-side, writing: "Left: The poster for Mignonnes, a French movie by a Black director that comments on hyper-sexualisation of girls in modern culture. Right: How Netflix is marketing it."
In response, Netflix released a statement on Twitter which read: "We're deeply sorry for the inappropriate artwork that we used for Mignonnes/Cuties. It was not ok, nor was it representative of this French film which won an award at Sundance. We’ve now updated the pictures and description."
WATCH: Cuties is a coming-of-age tale and Sundance winner from 2020
The film follows Fathia Youssouf as Amy, a young girl who joins a group of dancers at her school. Praising the movie, one person wrote: "#CUTIES is a beautiful film. It gutted me at @sundancefest. It introduces a fresh voice at the helm. She’s a French Senegalese Black woman mining her experiences. The film comments on the hyper-sexualization of preadolescent girls. Disappointed to see the current discourse." Another added: "This movie was made by a black woman who criticises hyper sexualisation of children. Netflix marketing ruined everything. The movie is actually really good!"
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However, others requested that the film be taken off the streaming service entirely, with one writing: "It's not just the artwork. The whole movie is not ok. Cancel it. Put it in the trashhh," while another person tweeted: "Who wrote it? Who made the call to put it up? Who approved it?"