14 Disturbing TV/Movie Moments That Did Not Age Well (And Won't Sit Well With You, Either)
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We recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us the most problematic movie and TV show moments, and unfortunately, they had many to contribute.
So, here are some of the most horrific movie/TV show moments that aged like milk:
Note: Not all submissions are from Community users.
Warning: This post contains subjects of transgender hate, sexual harassment, and fat-shaming. Please proceed with caution.
1.On Frasier (1993-2004), when actor Jane Leeves got pregnant and instead of writing it into the show, they poked fun at her "fatness" and "large weight":
"I never liked the 'fat Daphne' storyline. Jane Leeves was pregnant in real life, and in the series, she and Niles had already gotten together, so it would've been an interesting storyline for her to be pregnant. Instead, they sent her away to 'fat camp' when Leeves was on maternity leave."
"Yeah — I hated that, too. Jane Leeves is gorgeous at any size. Also, I didn’t care for the way they painted Roz as a 'slut' (just because she liked sex and dated a lot of guys)."
2.During the early seasons of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990, 1991, and 1992), when Will was in high school and he dated women over the age of 18 like it was completely "normal" and acceptable:
"I've been rewatching The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and I noticed that Will is a high school sophomore going on dates with grown women — and [Uncle Phil and Aunt Viv don't] say anything!"
3.In Empire Records (1995), when a veryyyyyy old Rex Manning preyed on high school student Corey, and insisted/insinuated she give him a blow job in an office:
"Empire Records was so hot when it came out, but now...OMG. Rex Manning is gross, and not in a dastardly-antagonist way — he's legitimately predatory. I don't think they handled it well."
4.On Sex and the City (1998-2004), when Carrie complained to the girls about her gold engagement ring from Aidan, and stated she only wore "ghetto gold" jewelry for "fun":
Yes, Sex and the City's reboot And Just Like That... is trying to right all of the wrongs from the original series (and movies), but the original series is hard to forget about. It was full of mindless language, characters, and situations that people are still offended and impacted by today.
—BuzzFeed
Suggested by: dishanath1
5.On The L Word (2004-2009), when Kit called Max out for wanting to transition, and essentially shamed him because it "saddened her that so many strong, butch girls are giving up their womanhood to be a man":
They totally mishandled Max's transgender storyline on The L Word, and dismissed the transitioning experience. Even though actor Daniel Sea recently revealed to IndieWire how The L Word: Generation Q tried to repair Max's original storyline, it's still pretty awful and did not age well.
—BuzzFeed
6.On The IT Crowd (2006-2013), when Douglas was happily dating April, and then all of a sudden was immediately turned off when she revealed she "used to be a man" (poking fun at the transgender experience):
"The subplot with Douglas and April in 'The Speech' episode is horribly anti-trans. There’s no payoff that makes this worth it (not that it’s in-character for him to 'accept' this, but still)."
7.At the end of Police Academy (1984), when Cadet Carey totally crossed the line and harassed Cadet Karen while she was in the beginning stages of training:
"Police Academy — [Cadet Carey] Mahoney making fun of a guy with a toupee, so many racist recruits, the leather bar scene, the guy with five girlfriends who just needed a woman to top him and get him in line. I probably forgot some — that movie would never get made today."
8.In Almost Famous (2000), when Penny Lane was clearly seconds away from having an overdose after drinking and taking drugs, and William still kissed her:
I've loved Almost Famous since I was in middle school, but after rewatching it recently, I can't help but be disturbed by a few scenes (this one especially). We're encouraged to root for Will because he "finally" admitted his love to Penny, but she was unconscious. She was literally about to overdose, and he KISSED HER ANYWAY. What made him think that was okay to do?! Absolutely not.
—BuzzFeed
9.On The Brady Bunch (1969-1974), when the entire Brady family was totally mindless and mistreated a Native American family with horrible stereotypes (like Bobby introducing himself to a young boy by saying: "How"):
Unfortunately, there are many insulting episodes from The Brady Bunch about Native American culture to choose from. Like this one, where Bobby leans into stereotypes of their language, and how to approach having a conversation with them — it's sooooo cringeworthy to watch in 2023.
—BuzzFeed
"There's another episode where Cindy is wearing Bobby’s 'Indian' costume (a fringe vest, moccasins, and feather headband). Bobby is upset about it, and then Alice comes over to see what’s going on, and she says: 'I think she makes a heapum cute squaw!' followed by a laugh track. 😳 That is just one example of many — nothing from that show aged well."
10.In The Way We Were (1973), when Katie "seduced" a drunken Hubbell while he was asleep and unaware of his surroundings (illustrating a disturbing moment of non-consensual sex):
Listen: I'm obsessed with The Way We Were with my whole heart and soul — if anyone asks, they know I'd die for Barbra Streisand. But, this moment from the movie always felt off to me — the fact that Katie is trying to "seduce" an unconscious Hubbell is very, very problematic. She gets upset toward the end of their sex scene because he "didn't realize" it was her (but, like...you "persuaded" an unconscious man to have sex with you?! Are we really supposed to feel bad for you in this moment?). This moment certainly didn't age well.
11.In Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), when they made a wholeeeeeee big joke out of Lt. Lois Einhorn's gender identity, unfortunately offending the trans community back then and now:
"That movie got the transgender experience WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!"
"OMG, yes, I forgot about this — I think I blocked it out, actually. The way they portrayed trans people was disgusting."
12.On Friends (1994-2004), when Carol and Susan's relationship in Season 1 was defined as an evil factor in Ross's life, rather than a groundbreaking moment in Carol's personal journey:
"Yes, we’ve all said it, but during my most recent rewatch of Friends, all the lesbian and LGBTQ+ jokes during the early seasons were horrible. Carol and Susan announcing their marriage, Ross making a face, and the laugh track comes in — instant cringe and face palm."
13.And when the show wrote anti-fat jokes about Monica's weight as a high schooler, and capitalized on the idea that "fat people don't deserve to be treated like everyone else":
"The CONSTANT anti-fat storylines on Friends. They used every chance they got to make fun of how Monica looked when she was 'fat,' both in the present day and in the flashback episodes. She seemed to be perfectly happy with her body before Chandler made that comment."
"Two words: 'Fat Monica.' That’s one that feels like it wasn’t just a case of it was 'a different time,' but just your basic 'let’s laugh at fat people' joke. It wasn’t cool then, and it isn’t cool now. Even in the late '90s/early '00s, there were conversations about eating disorders, so portraying someone who was a relatively 'normal' size as a joke was deeply unhealthy."
14.And on Glee (2009-2015), when Ryder confided in the glee club about being molested as a child by an older woman, and Artie didn't understand his trauma because he thought it was "cool":
There are so, so, SO many moments from Glee that didn't age well — this show is the definition of "aging like milk." This scene especially was so problematic — I don't know how it made the final cut, or why it was written in the first place? Glee never took sexual harassment seriously, especially for a show that most people claim to be "ahead of its time."
—BuzzFeed
Suggested by: courtnie13
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
