At a time when trigger warnings are becoming increasingly popular, viewers might be surprised by the latest to have been spotted on Hulu. In particular, the newly-released film Not Okay received a trigger warning for the following: an “unlikable female protagonist.”
It’s certainly an interesting “content warning.” And, while the character certainly can be considered as much by those who’ve seen the film, it might be surprising to see such a warning. Especially considering many films and shows have focused on unlikable protagonists.
Here’s how the complete warning was written:
“CONTENT WARNING: This film contains flashing lights, themes of trauma, and an unlikable female protagonist. Viewer discretion advised.”
The first time I have ever seen a CW for “unlikable female protagonist” pic.twitter.com/2xq7P03ByM
— Olivia Taylor Smith (@OliviaTSmith) July 30, 2022
This means in addition to the warning regarding the film’s protagonist, there are additional warnings for “flashlight lights” as well as “themes of trauma.” While trigger warnings have become much more common as streaming services implement them to warn audiences for what they’re about to watch, it’ll be interesting to see if they continue to evolve. After all, there are plenty of movies that include graphic content or controversial characters that could easily be introduced with such content warnings. But whether or not they should be included as part of a movie-watching experience is another discussion.
Zoey Deutch stars in the film as Danni Sanders. Her character is an aspiring writer who ends up faking her trip to Paris. The film then follows a dark comedy narrative as she further creates a lie she has to live with in which she claims to have survived a terrorist attack in France. This all stems after the character is upset by her lack of a social media presence. With that in mind, one can see why the character is considered unlikable in the aforementioned content warning.
The newly-released film Not Okay was written and directed by Quinn Shephard.
The cast for the film includes Zoey Deutch, Mia Isaac, and Negin Farsad.
Not Okay is currently available to stream on Hulu.