Catapulted into fame in 2016 for her role as Eleven in “Stranger Things,” Millie Bobby Brown has been in the public eye for nearly half her life. Since then, she has been on the receiving end of bullying and criticism from the media. In previous years, she was labeled “annoying” compared to her “Stranger Things” costars, and in 2018, she deleted her Twitter account due to excessive bullying. More recently, her appearance has been the main target of journalists and social media trolls. Brown is currently on the press tour for her latest film, “The Electric State,” and her red carpet appearances have become the headline for countless articles. The titles of these articles include: “Why are Gen Zers like Millie Bobby Brown aging so badly?”, “What has Millie Bobby Brown done to her face?” and “Millie Bobby Brown mistaken for someone’s mom as she guides younger sister Ava through LA.” Despite these articles being written by journalists and published on major news sites, they do nothing but tear down a young woman and reinforce toxic beauty standards— a trend that has been seen throughout the years with other female celebrities like Britney Spears and Billie Eilish.
Earlier this month, Brown posted a video to her Instagram responding to some of the journalists criticizing her appearance – rightfully calling them out by name. In her video, she explains that she began her career at a very young age, and that people cannot seem to fathom that she is growing up and should not be expected to look or act the same way she did in season 1 of “Stranger Things.” After listing the article titles and naming the journalists, she says “This isn’t journalism. This is bullying. The fact that adult writers are spending their time dissecting my face, my body, my choices, is disturbing, and the fact that some of these articles are written by women makes it even worse… I refuse to apologize for growing up.” She ends her video encouraging people to be better, not just for her, “but for every young girl who deserves to grow up without fear of being torn apart for simply existing.”
Of course, people have a right to voice their opinions, but doing so through mainstream news outlets is not the way to do it. As Brown said in her video, it’s disheartening to see women writing articles that do nothing but criticize and judge another woman’s appearance. Would these journalists say the same things about their female friends or sisters? Millie Bobby Brown’s Instagram video — which has amassed over 80 million views — sent a powerful and important message. There’s nothing wrong with growing up and experimenting with your looks or style, and it’s time we stop tearing down women for doing so.