It's the holiday season, which means many of us are overindulging in chocolate, avoiding the in-laws, and re-watching some of our favorite festive movies.
From Home Alone to The Grinch, some movies have been cemented in history as those "Christmas Classics" - films that have become traditional to sit down and watch with loved ones. And one movie that is guaranteed to get many of us in the Christmas spirit is Love Actually.
Richard Curtis' 2003 romantic comedy tells the story of how a number of Londoners attempt to find love while having their lives intertwined with one another. Oh, and Alan Rickman makes the biggest mistake of his life when he cheats on Emma Thompson with some hussy (I'm still not over it).
However, not everybody is best pleased after re-watching the movie this holiday season. Yes, in a development that I'm sure none of you will find surprising, many viewers have taken to social media to bash the star-studded flick, branding it "sexist" and "fatphobic".
Taking to X, one person writes: "The fat shaming in Love Actually makes it unwatchable. Whoever the man is who wrote this owes women an apology."
A second added: "I love Love Actually, if only it wasn’t sexist and fatphobic."
And a third tweeted: "I forgot how fatphobic [Love Actually] is… one of my fave Christmas movies but wowee a lot of unnecessary bullying about people’s weight".
"God there's so much cringey #fatphobic lines in Love Actually. Kinda ruins it", another added.
The movie's "fatphobic" comments are mainly aimed at Martine McCutcheon's character, Natalie - whose body is commented on multiple times throughout the movie. Recalling the reason her last boyfriend broke up with her, she says: "Nobody wants a girlfriend with thighs the size of tree trunks."
Elsewhere in the movie, she's referred to as "the chubby girl", nicknamed "Plumpy", and described as having a "sizeable a**e and huge thighs".
Equality expert Dr Charlotte Proudman also tweeted back in October: "Films about all-white straight male characters who sit around laughing at women’s weight and appearance are boring as well as sexist. Love Actually is seriously cringeworthy."
Many complaints of "sexism" in the movie come from how men lust after the female characters and succeed in their conquests with little issue.
Colin literally flies to the US to find a woman who will tolerate him, Harry cheats on his wife with his assistant with very little being made of it on-screen, and Mark's lusting over his best mate's wife is rewarded with a kiss - rather than a "why are you standing at my door with a load of cards, I'm married to your best friend."
Despite the complaints, Love Actually is destined to remain a Christmas favorite for
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