Chappell Roan removed a tribute to Brigitte Bardot after learning about the late French icon’s far-right views and extensive history of hateful remarks.
“Holy shit I did not know all that insane shit Ms. Bardot stood for,” Roan wrote on her Instagram Story after deleting her original post. “Obvs I do not condone this. Very disappointing to learn.”
Roan’s initial post, shared Sunday after Bardot’s death, was rather straightforward and presented with little comment on Bardot’s career, let alone her controversial political views. “Rest in peace Ms. Bardot,” Roan wrote. “She was my inspiration for ‘Red Wine Supernova.’”
The opening lines to Roan’s track — “She was a playboy, Brigitte Bardot/She showed me things I didn’t know” — nod to Bardot’s legacy as an icon of the mid-century sexual revolution. She became a global celebrity after starring as a liberated, unapologetically libidinous teenager in 1956’s And God Created Woman, and continued to push the boundaries of eroticism on screen up until her retirement from acting in 1973.
After her film career, Bardot largely became an advocate for animal rights. But her efforts there were often overshadowed by controversial comments on other topics. In her 2003 memoir, she disparaged members of the LGBTQ+ community and railed against the supposed “Islamization of French society.” She was eventually accused of inciting racial hatred and fined 5,000 euros.
Bardot would be convicted and fined for inciting racial hatred in France five times. In 2018, she also angered fans after dismissing the #MeToo movement. Speaking with Paris Match, she described women calling out predatory men in the film industry “hypocritical,” adding, “Many actresses flirt with producers to get a role. Then when they tell the story afterwards, they say they have been harassed … in actual fact, rather than benefit them, it only harms them.”
Steve Cohen*
