{"id":22790,"date":"2021-05-12T21:18:48","date_gmt":"2021-05-12T21:18:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/?post_type=articles&p=22790"},"modified":"2021-05-16T19:01:34","modified_gmt":"2021-05-16T19:01:34","slug":"scarlett-johansson-mtv-generation-award","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/articles\/scarlett-johansson-mtv-generation-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Scarlett Johansson Is Getting MTV\u2019s \u201cGeneration Award\u201d And We Have Some Thoughts"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Scarlett
Scarlett Johansson (Photo: Axelle\/Bauer-Griffin\/FilmMagic)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On Sunday, Scarlett Johansson<\/a> will receive the \u201cGeneration Award\u201d at this year\u2019s MTV Movie & TV Awards<\/a> show. MTV describes it as a \u201chighly coveted\u201d award which is bestowed upon \u201cbeloved actors whose diverse contributions to both film and television have turned them into household names.\u201d Tom Cruise<\/a>, Will Smith<\/a>, Jim Carrey, and The Rock have all received the honor over the years.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no denying that Scarlett Johansson is a household name, and she\u2019s certainly beloved by many thanks primarily to her role as the Black Widow<\/a> in the world-devouring Marvel Cinematic Universe. She\u2019s also a respected actor who has received multiple Academy Award nominations and won a Tony. She is unquestionably one of her generation\u2019s biggest movie stars, and that\u2019s what this award is ostensibly recognizing.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s the word \u201cgeneration\u201d that concerns me here. Specifically: what generation is Johansson supposed to represent? And what generation is supposed to be honoring her? And the reason I\u2019m so hung up on this is because over the years, Johansson has been involved in multiple controversies and unforced errors that, to my mind, run completely counter to values of the socially conscious generation that MTV seems so eager to court.<\/p>\n

\"Johansson
Johansson with ‘Avengers’ co-stars Paul Rudd and Robert Downey Jr. (Photo: Jeff Gritchen\/MediaNews Group\/Orange County Register via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For instance: In 2014, Johansson opted to step down<\/a> from her volunteer position as an Oxfam ambassador in favor of retaining a lucrative ad deal with SodaStream. The decision came after the global anti-poverty nonprofit objected to her endorsement deal due to the location of SodaStream\u2019s factories in Israeli settlements in the West Bank. In a letter to Johansson, Oxfam made its position clear: \u201cBusinesses that operate in settlements further the ongoing poverty and denial of rights of the Palestinian communities that we work to support.\u201d For her part, Johansson was unapologetic about her decision to shill for the beverage company suggesting that the issue of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land in violation of international law was \u201ccomplicated.\u201d You have to wonder<\/a> if she still feels that way.<\/p>\n

The following year, Johansson came under fire for accepting the lead role in the live action adaptation of Japanese manga franchise Ghost in the Shell<\/em>. Critics accused the filmmakers of whitewashing the character, insisting that because the film was based on a Japanese property and set in a fictional Japan, the role should have been played by an Asian actor. The film\u2019s producers went so far as to test visual effects<\/a> that would make Johansson appear more Asian, though the actor was reportedly not involved in the tests. When asked about the controversy, Johansson tended to dodge the issue with vague platitudes about diversity.<\/p>\n

Having learned seemingly nothing from that experience, in 2018 Johansson again accepted a controversial role, this time playing a transgender man in the biopic Rub & Tug<\/em>. When questioned about the role, she told journalists<\/a> that their questions should be \u201cdirected to Jeffrey Tambor, Jared Leto, and Felicity Huffman\u2019s reps for comment.\u201d (All three cisgender actors have won awards for playing trans characters.) She eventually backed out of the film and was considerably more contrite in subsequent interviews.<\/p>\n

But in a 2019 interview with As If Magazine<\/em>, Johansson was back to flaunting her privilege<\/a>: \u201cAs an actor I should be allowed to play any person, or any tree, or any animal because that is my job,\u201d she said, claiming later that her comments had been taken out of context<\/a>. In the same statement, she seemed to have gotten the message \u2014 or hit upon better messaging \u2014 that the issue isn\u2019t just about artistic expression; it\u2019s also about employment opportunities and discrimination in hiring: \u201cI recognize that in reality, there is a widespread discrepancy amongst my industry that favors Caucasian, cisgender actors and that not every actor has been given the same opportunities that I have been privileged to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Perhaps most disturbing is Johansson\u2019s continued defense of friend and frequent collaborator Woody Allen against accusations of sexual abuse made by his daughter Dylan Farrow. As recently as 2019, she said of the director<\/a>, \u201cI love Woody. I believe him, and I would work with him any time. I see Woody whenever I can, and I have had a lot of conversations with him about it (the allegations against him). I have been very direct with him, and he\u2019s very direct with me. He maintains his innocence, and I believe him.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year, Johansson reflected<\/a> on her history of gaffes, and it didn\u2019t take her long to adopt her usual, knee-jerk defensive stance: \u201cI don\u2019t think actors have obligations to have a public role in society,\u201d Johansson, who has voluntarily participated in political campaigns and endorsed candidates, insisted, once again displaying a profound myopia. She claimed that it was unfair for her to be criticized for her views or held accountable for her actions. \u201cYou didn\u2019t choose to be a politician, you\u2019re an actor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Any one of these controversies might have been forgivable, given an effective apology tour. We are living through a profound cultural shift, and people are no longer willing to accept things that were always<\/em> unacceptable. Some of us are going to lag on certain issues and may need a swift reckoning to catch up. But when you look back at Johansson\u2019s history in toto, what you see is a stunning record of cis white privilege and knee-jerk resistance to being held accountable.<\/p>\n

Gen Z, MTV\u2019s prime demographic, is supposed to be the most progressive<\/a> generation in US history. They\u2019re familiar with issues of representation, with trans issues. They don\u2019t tolerate whitewashing or cultural appropriation, or sexual misconduct, or unchecked privilege. If this is the current MTV generation, then Scarlett Johansson, for all the passes she\u2019s gotten and all of the money that\u2019s riding on her upcoming Marvel movie, sure seems like an odd choice to receive a \u201cGeneration Award.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29097,"featured_media":22792,"template":"","format":"standard","categories":[23,38,16],"yoast_head":"\nWhy Is Scarlett Johansson Getting MTV\u2019s \u201cGeneration Award\u201d?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"On Sunday, Scarlett Johansson will receive the \u201cGeneration Award\u201d at this year\u2019s MTV Movie & TV Awards show. 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