Marc Maron makes his career on saying things that are a bit…out there. His style of comedy isn’t quite trolling, but he certainly postures as a “tell it like it is” kinda guy. Personally, I’m a huge fan of his work, but he’s choosing an odd hill to die on attacking the MCU.
In a number of tweets and recent media interviews for the upcoming Joker movie, a cast of which he is a part, Maron makes it clear he isn’t big on the MCU. In fact, he goes so far as to say that it’s for “grown male nerd childs,” apparently forgetting the plural of the word is “children.” For a comedian of Maron’s talents, it’s strange to see him resorting to such a schoolyard-bully-level taunt. He then took his criticism to Twitter, responding to people offended by his remarks.
Hey, Marvel movie fans! Stop acting like outraged religious fanatics defending their belief system. It’s okay if I don’t believe. Let it go. Also, I’m actually big fan of a lot of comic art. Try to relax your mainstream asses.
— marc maron (@marcmaron) August 24, 2019
Addressing Joker. My heroes are HUMAN. I did a scene with one of my heroes in REAL LIFE. Doesn’t change the way I feel. Small compromise. Probably a once in a lifetime opportunity. That’s the problem with having human heroes I guess.
— marc maron (@marcmaron) August 26, 2019
Apparently, the consensus is I’m allowed to have my opinion about MCU but the use of the word ‘nerd’ and ‘grown man child’ and any suggestion of cultural infantilism was triggering. I get it. Noted.
— marc maron (@marcmaron) August 26, 2019
The security system in most brains is outdated.
— marc maron (@marcmaron) August 25, 2019
good times doing the troll dance with emotional baby brains. forgot what an exciting waste of time this can be
— marc maron (@marcmaron) August 25, 2019
Marc Maron Claims MCU Fans are Male Nerds
Recent updates in the MCU (as seen in the MCU Disney Expo) show a more diverse cast of actors, producers, and directors than ever before. It’s been long disproven that only men like comic books, with the self-identified women accounting for nearly half of readership. Plus, movies are universally enjoyed by all. Everyone from directors, producers, costume designers, and yes, the actors in the MCU are women. We can easily discount the male nerd thing, but what about the infantilization of MCU fans Maron claims makes the films too immature for his liking?
Maron: The MCU is for Children
You see it throughout the history of popular culture. Everyone from the literary great Charles Dickens to the likes of playwright William Shakespeare regularly took flack for writing stories deemed childish or unsophisticated. Yes, children love superheroes. But, what about all the adults who make it out to these movies? Maybe the MCU is less about childish characters and mundane plots and more about the wonder they inspire. Watching MCU films invokes feelings of adventure and limitlessness. That makes for a great moviegoing experience. When Marc Maron attacks the MCU, he’s attacking our modern mythology, that will be a part of our culture for generations.