Erin Moriarty, who plays Starlight in The Boys, has called out “misogynistic trolls” who abuse the character and actor online.
In The Boys Season 3, Annie January – aka Starlight – finds herself in an impossible situation: to combat Homelander’s plummeting ratings, Vought forces the pair into a “Homelight” relationship.
If she doesn’t comply, he’ll murder Hughie. If she exposes him as a murderer, he’ll scorch the Earth. So, with nobody to help her, she just has to take it.
Yet, despite the clear message, some fans really rallied against Starlight in the latest season, criticizing her – and in turn, Moriarty – on social media, and she’s had enough.
Erin Moriarty calls out “misogynistic trolls” among The Boys fans
In an Instagram post, Moriarty shared an article titled: “#IStandWithStarlight?: The betrayal of Erin Moriarty by The Boys ‘fans’.”
The article, written by @butcherscanary on Medium, opens: “As it turns out, you can dedicate an entire season of a television show to exploring how the toxicity of masculinity crushes and controls women, and seemingly a majority of the audience will still fail to employ the lessons learned — or worse, not have recognized there was a message at all.”
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erin moriarty we love you so much!! and the way the cast is defending her, they’re literally a family 🙁 pic.twitter.com/V3Of8P01CA
— anna (@beauxarlen) September 7, 2022
In her caption, Moriarty wrote: “I do feel silenced. I do feel dehumanized. I do feel paralyzed. I’ve put blood, sweat, and tears into this role (over & over & over again), I’ve grown UP in this character’s shoes (*emphasis on grown up – we change & evolve mentally AND physically).
“So with that I say: a) thank you to @butcherscanary b) this does break my heart – I’ve opened up a vein for this role and this kind of trolling is exactly what this role (Annie) would speak out against and c) everyone’s going through their own battle(s); let’s not add to that.
“I will never intentionally (and ESPECIALLY) publicly add to yours. This has only strengthened my empathy muscle and to anyone who comes at me: I see you, I I don’t hate you, I only empathize and forgive.”
Among the many fans showing their support for the actor, co-star Antony Starr commented: “Support you and what you say here 100%. Well put… your work on the show is and always has been stellar and you are beautiful inside and out. Keep shining.”
