GOP lawmakers have called on the Department of Justice to investigate and bring action against Netflix for releasing a film that depicts "the sexualization of children."
"Cuties" depicts an 11-year-old joining other underage girls in a school dance group and "rapidly grows aware of her burgeoning femininity – upsetting her mother and her values in the process," according to a synopsis of the French-directed film on IMDB.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., fired off a statement to the Daily Caller condemning the release.
"There's no excuse for the sexualization of children, and Netflix's decision to promote the film 'Cuties' is disgusting at best and a serious crime at worst," Cotton's statement said.
"I urge the Department of Justice to take action against Netflix for their role in pushing explicit depictions of children into American homes."
Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., added his outrage at the movie release as well.
"As a father of young daughters, I find it sickening," he told the DC. "Not only is this movie fodder for pedophiles, it encourages very young girls to defy their parents' wishes and share pornographic images of themselves with strangers."
Netflix defended the film as "social commentary against the sexualization of young children."
"It's an award winning film and a powerful story about the pressure young girls face on social media and from society more generally growing up – and we'd encourage anyone who cares about these important issues to watch the movie," a spokesperson told the DC in a statement.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., scoffed at the excusem, tweeting:
"Great. Maybe @Netflix would like to come talk this over before Congress."
The film rating website Rotten Tomatoes showed professional critics giving the film an average score of 88%, while audience rankings averaged 3%.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.