Hollywood star blasphemes Netflix hit and Oscar favorite: “A piece of shit”

Western drama “The Power of the Dog” may be one of the biggest winners of the upcoming Academy Awards – Jane Campion’s movie was nominated for twelve categories, including “Best Picture.” Benedict Cumberbatch, who tends to a farm as a bitter farmer, played a leading role.

However, the film has not only fans. On the podcast “WTF with Marc Maron,” Hollywood star Sam Elliott (A Star is Born) harshly criticized Netflix’s success. For his part, he has received criticism online from viewers who accuse him of sexism.

Sam Elliott deals with Netflix movie

The Power of the Dog was filmed in New Zealand, the home of director Jane Campion. The film takes place in the year 1925 in the Montana countryside. Elliot finds this very confusing. In his opinion, the film should have simply been shot in the United States. On the podcast, he gets angry first:

Benedict Cumberbatch vs. Jesse Plemons in The Power of the Dog.Photo: AP / Kirsty Griffin

His next point of criticism of the director is a little more personal, as he accuses her of not being aware of the realities of that time. While the star makes it clear that he thinks Campion is a “great director” and loves her previous work, he goes on to share: “What the hell does that woman over there, New Zealand, know about the American Wild West?”

In fact, that’s a pretty ridiculous accusation, especially since Elliot wasn’t born in 1925 either. While the 77-year-old has appeared in many Westerns over the course of his career, that doesn’t necessarily make him more competent than Campion, given that films are ultimately fiction anyway. With his statement, he also did not consider that the director could have gained knowledge about the genre.

Elliott didn’t finish it, though he goes on to quipped that the scenes with the shirtless cowboys reminded him of Chippendale dancers. His bitter conclusion: “dog strength” is “a piece of bullshit.”

Fans react to harsh criticism of ‘dog power’

Ultimately, Sam Elliott’s harsh criticism also seems insensitive because male homosexuality is the subject of the film and he’s insinuating that the characters aren’t masculine enough for him. In any case, the headwind for him in social networks was not long in coming. For example, Hollywood Reporter editor Rebecca Keegan came to the conclusion that Elliot did not understand the director’s intentions:

This user also finds the actor’s sayings ridiculous. “Someone should remind Elliot that he is a Sacramento actor who lives in Malibu, not a real cowboy,” he wrote on Twitter.

Finally, “Paste Magazine” film critic Jacob Oller recalls that Elliott once participated in a homosexually-charged “man movie”: “Road House” with Patrick Swayze. He scored a classic own goal.

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