Jerry Seinfeld was speaking at the Duke Commencement Address when his speech took an unexpected turn. Though it has been more than a decade since the release of his animated film ‘Bee Movie‘, the actor brought it up to address the discomfort many viewers have had with the film.
In a gesture that no one at the event was expecting, Seinfeld apologized for the “sexual undertones” in his animated film. Here’s what the ‘Seinfeld‘ star said and why it matters.
Jerry Seinfeld Addresses The Sexual Undertones In His 2007 Animated Film ‘Bee Movie’
While Jerry Seinfeld was delivering his Duke Commencement Address, he saw many attendees walking out. However, he seemed undeterred about getting his message across as he used the opportunity to reflect on his animated film ‘Bee Movie‘s sexual implications.
“I made a cartoon movie about bees you may have watched as a child,” he said referring to the 2007 animated film. “If any of you felt slightly uncomfortable about the sexual undertones in the relationship between Barry the bee and Vanessa, the florist who saves his life, I would like to apologize for that now,” he said.
“I may not have calibrated that perfectly, but I would not change it,” he added, implying that though he is apologizing, it was an honest mistake that was not aimed to cause any harm.
Jerry Seinfeld’s apology at the Duke Commencement Ceremony was a means to clarify to his viewers that he did not intend to send any inappropriate message through the film. Though he offered a sincere apology for any discomfort caused by the film’s content, he stood by his creative choices.
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Jerry Seinfeld Roots For Having A Sense Of Humor Even In The Face Of Tragedy
Jerry Seinfeld also took the opportunity to underscore the importance of maintaining a sense of humor in the face of life’s challenges, and well, films. “The slightly uncomfortable feeling of awkward humor is OK,” he said. “It’s not something you need to fix,” he added.
“Not a lot of life makes sense for you to be able to survive it without humor,” he added. He praised the current generation for having “ambitions to create a more just and inclusive society,” but at the same time reiterated the importance of retaining one’s humor even in the face of sensitive issues.
This is not the first time that the actor has brought up the sexual undertones of his 2007 animated film. In 2021, he opened up about it on ‘The Tonight Show’. “I apologize for what seems to be a certain uncomfortable subtle sexual aspect of the Bee Movie,” he said at the time.
“[It] really was not intentional, but after it came out, I realized this is really not appropriate for children. Because the bee seems to have a thing for the girl, and we don’t really want to pursue that as an idea in children’s entertainment,” he added.
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