Does anybody else remember when they first learned that James Woods was a garbage human being? For most, it may have been his infamous Obama rant.
For some, it may have been when they saw his recent tweet — in which he directs his transphobic vitriol at an 8-year-old boy. That sort of thing gives pause, even to other bigots.
And Neil Patrick Harris, who’s known for being super friendly and generally a non-confrontational person, clearly got a little hot under the collar over that tweet — and did not mince words as he took James Woods to task.
Neil Patrick Harris really isn’t the guy you think of when somebody needs to get a well-deserved takedown on Twitter.
Usually, for that sort of thing, we might look to an unstoppable duo like Chrissy Teigen and John Legend.
But recent events clearly moved him to stand up for an 8-year-old whom James Woods called out in a tweet with an insult that … we’ll get to later.
Fair warning: it’s upsetting.
Because James Woods reblogged a photo from Orange County Pride, and singled out this one family for some vile commentary.
The photo itself, however, is great:
That’s Lori Duron, who runs the Raising My Rainbow blog, Matt, and their 8-year-old son, CJ.
All in all, she received a lot of compliments for her post and for the photos.
And, before you ask, we should just go ahead and clarify what gender creative means.
It’s not the same thing as being, say, gay or bi or trans, though someone who is gender creative might not be straight or might not be cisgender.
(Often, the term “gender creative” is applied to kids who are so young that things like gender and sexuality might still be really uncertain anyway)
Rather, a gender creative (or, more commonly known, a gender nonconforming) kid is one who doesn’t adhere to any set of strict gender roles, either internally or externally.
Gender roles are super weird anyway — why is one gender supposed to like certain colors? Why is one gender supposed to like grilling things? One gender is supposed to like decorating their nails and another is supposed to like foul-tasting fermented grain?
So, CJ is 8 and his family’s super supportive, which is great for a human being of any age, but especially for a developing child.
And then comes James Woods:
“This is sweet. Wait until this poor kid grows up, realizes what you’ve done, and stuffs both of you dismembered into a freezer in the garage.”
If only he’d stopped after those first three words, right?
First of all, his parents aren’t doing anything but loving and supporting their child.
CJ’s older brother isn’t in the photo but he loves and supports his brother, too.
(Children can be amazing sometimes)
So the “what you’ve done” thing is weird, but unfortunately a lot of bigots make similar statements about parents of children who are gay or bi or trans.
As if somehow this is something that parents are doing to their children.
But the worst part is the end, of course, where James Woods evokes antiquated fears that associate trans people with serial killers.
Like … The Silence of the Lambs isn’t a documentary.
(Also, Buffalo Bill was explicitly stated in both the book and film as not being trans)
But James Woods knows that his bigoted followers will eat up his every word.
And that they’ll latch onto that awful image.
Neil Patrick Harris, however, wasn’t having it:
“Utterly ignorant and classless, Mr. Woods. I’m friends with this family. You know not of what you speak, and should be ashamed of yourself.”
That’s exactly what needed to be said.
Also, “you know not of what you speak” is the most elegant way of calling someone an ignorant fool who embarrasses themselves every time that they open their mouth.
James Woods is no stranger to bigotry, of course.
Remember when Twitter was ablaze with talk of Anderson Cooper’s famous eyeroll while talking to Kellyanne Conway?
James Woods chimed in with his inexcusable
“As his butt plug dislodges during a newscast…”
In addition to being a raging homophobe, James Woods seems to not know how butts work.
Maybe he should check out Teen Vogue‘s guide to anal sex so that he doesn’t keep embarrassing people with his ignorance.
It’s no wonder that so many people wonder when James Woods will shut up already.
