As Matt Damon’s controversial big-budget movie “The Great Wall” hits North American theaters on February 17, the Twitterverse has come prepared with the hilariously sarcastic hashtag #thankyoumattdamon.
The made-for-Hollywood, Chinese-U.S. co-production has been widely criticized for allegedly perpetuating the “white hero” complex by having Damon in the lead role.
Now Twitter users are reminding Damon of how most people feel about the movie by sarcastically saying thanks for saving the world with his whiteness, via the hashtag #ThankYouMattDamon.
Here are some of the hilarious ones:
Matt Damon taught me how to use chopsticks. #thankyoumattdamon
— Jenny Yang 👲👲👲 (@jennyyangtv) February 16, 2017
#thankyoumattdamon for teaching us that during the Middle Ages, before the United States was born, everyone in China spoke American English
— Resist Now (@Resist_N0W) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon taught me that if I didn’t finish all of my rice it would be waiting for me in Chinese hell.#thankyoumattdamon
— Paul Lao (@PaulLaojokes) February 16, 2017
#ThankYouMattDamon the father of Kung Fu
— Thaires (@ThilezTV) February 16, 2017
“I’ve heard a great deal about you, Matt Damon” #ThankYouMattDamon pic.twitter.com/MuOwprZdYf
— jes tom (@jestom) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon is such a fine Asian actor. #ThankYouMattDamon
— ChanMan (@ChandranTheMan) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon fought & ended the Chinese Exclusionary Act. #ThankYouMattDamon @jennyyangtv
— Raymond Vagell (@prancingpapio) February 16, 2017
Forget Mulan, Matt Damon is the only one who could save China #thankyoumattdamon
— Lily Luo (@LilyLuo930) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon introduced noodles to the Europeans #thankyoumattdamon
— Teresa Wang (@tewang32) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon is setting me up with all his friends children, especially the doctors and lawyers #ThankYouMattDamon
— Joyce Lin (@joyceclin) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon gave me the fattest red envelope this year #ThankYouMattDamon
— Joyce Lin (@joyceclin) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon introduced me to boba #thankyoumattdamon https://t.co/rIdxIgjUUR
— Shanna Choung (@ShannAwesome) February 16, 2017
@jennyyangtv Matt Damon’s haggling skills got me a great deal on a dozen tshirts at the night market #thankyoumattdamon
— Teresa Wang (@tewang32) February 16, 2017
Without Matt Damon, I wouldn’t be able to differentiate between the 4 tones of Mandarin! #thankyoumattdamon
— #BLACKLIVESMATTER (@BlackDynamiteJC) February 16, 2017
@jennyyangtv Matt Damon trained me to be a black belt in kung fu. #thankyoumattdamon
— Ariana Zhang (@ArianaZhang) February 16, 2017
Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson are my favorite Asian couple. #ThankYouMattDamon
— Andrew Nguyen (@andrewnguyening) February 16, 2017
#ThankYouMattDamon, apparently this applies to our Asian brothers and sisters, too. pic.twitter.com/0lamiMVpxl
— POLY TICKS (@step4battle) February 16, 2017
While Damon earlier explained that he wasn’t whitewashing a role that was originally written for a white character, the reasoning clearly misses the point as the criticisms towards the film are mostly aimed at the tired narrative of having the need of a white man to be the savior of Asian people.
One of the film’s most vocal critics is “Fresh Off The Boat” actress Constance Wu who wrote a long post pointing out the faults of such types of films.
“We have to stop perpetuating the racist myth that only a white man can save the world. It’s not an actual fact,” Wu wrote via Twitter in July. “It’s not about blaming individuals. Rather, it’s about pointing out the repeatedly implied racist notion that white people are superior to POC and that POC needs salvation from our own color via white strength. When you consistently make movies like this, you ARE saying that. YOU ARE.”
The film currently has an approval rating of 35% based on 49 reviews, with an average rating of 4.9/10 on movie rating aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.
The movie’s critical consensus reads, “For a Yimou Zhang film featuring Matt Damon and Willem Dafoe battling ancient monsters, The Great Wall is neither as exciting nor as entertainingly bonkers as one might hope.”
“The Great Wall is easily the least interesting and involving blockbuster of the respective careers of both its director and star,” Clarence Tsui of The Hollywood Reporter wrote in her review.
