Netflix’s ‘woke’ reboots of classic shows drive fans to revolt

Fans of fantasy, science fiction and cartoons are revolting against the filmmakers behind Netflix’s “woke” adaptations of some of their favorite genre content.

Young adults who grew up with “Masters of the Universe,” “Cowboy Bebop” and “The Witcher” are mixing it up on social media with filmmakers they feel have emasculated their heroes in favor of women’s empowerment and multicultural narratives — and the filmmakers have pushed back in a series of public feuds with the audience.

“There’s an increasing disconnect between Hollywood and fandom,” said entertainment writer Christian Toto, author of “Virtue Bombs How Hollywood Got Woke and Lost Its Soul.” “For every ‘fan service’ project like ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home,’ there are others like ‘Masters of the Universe’ where the storytellers directly disregard what loyal audiences crave.”

Mr. Toto, a former reporter for The Washington Times, added that creators of “woke reboots” often add to the tension by not disclosing their agendas in advance.

“The creators often make it worse by being disingenuous about the projects in play,” he said. “Director Kevin Smith, a key figure behind the ‘Masters’ reboot, is known for connecting with admirers. Yet he misled them in the run-up to that show’s release and took an antagonistic tone when challenged.”

Mr. Smith, showrunner for “Masters of the Universe: Revelation,” accused fans of “review-bombing” his reboot with bad ratings on Rotten Tomatoes and the Internet Movie Database within hours of its July 23 Netflix debut.

“I know there’s some people that are like, ‘Hey, man, this show’s woke,’” Mr. Smith told Variety in a July interview. “I’m like, all right, great, then so was the original cartoon we’re … sequel-izing. Go watch it again. There are girls in every episode. Deal with it.”

His reimagining of the 1980s “Masters of the Universe” cartoon, based on Mattel action figures, starts with the apparent deaths of the main hero He-Man and his nemesis Skeletor. The first season then follows the heroine Teela as she carries on in their absence.

But fan Grace Randolph noted in an Aug. 1 YouTube video that “Masters” had quickly dropped out of Netflix’s top 10, signifying a flop that went beyond the ideological opposition of a few fans.

“On Netflix this week, fans sent a clear message to Kevin Smith and company who tried to spin the negative reaction last week as if it was a couple of upset fans who were review-bombing, but it’s hard to argue with ’Masters of the Universe: Revelation’ disappearing out of the overall Top 10 and the Top 10 TV shows after just one week while so many other shows have stayed in the top 10 for weeks on end,” Ms. Randolph said in her video.

Fans also have hit “Cowboy Bebop,” a live-action sci-fi western adaptation of a 1998 anime series, for toning down its portrayal of femme fatale Faye Valentine.

“The problem with Netflix’s Faye Valentine costume is that it doesn’t capture the essence of the character,” a fan with the Twitter handle “Nina Infinity” said in an Aug. 28 tweet.

Actress Daniella Pineda, who played Valentine, attacked fans directly in a now-deleted video she posted to Twitter on Aug. 27.

“First, I wanted to apologize to the fans that I did not anatomically match the Faye Valentine character — 6-foot, double-D sized breasts, two-inch waist,” Miss Pineda said in the video. “You know, they looked everywhere for that woman and they couldn’t find her.”

Netflix announced in early December, less than a month after the series’ Nov. 19 debut, that it was canceling “Bebop” after one season.

Only 46% of critics and 55% of fans gave “Bebop” a positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. And while the show reportedly attracted nearly 74 million viewing hours globally after its debut, those numbers plunged by 59% during the week of Nov. 29 to Dec. 5.

Fans have more recently hit the Netflix version of “The Witcher,” a Polish-language fantasy novel series adapted into a hit video game series starting in 2007, for diminishing the male lead played by Henry Cavill in favor of a feminist and multicultural agenda.

Jeremy Hambly, the conservative host of “The Quartering” channel on YouTube, engaged in a series of Jan. 10-14 video arguments with showrunner Lauren Hissrich, posted on Twitter, about his criticisms of the show’s recasting of European characters with actors of color.

In a moment of peace, Mr. Hambly and Ms. Hissrich agreed they had had a respectful exchange of ideas, leading him to declare that they had become “frenemies.”

“It’s worth a chance to have a conversation and convince some people that I’m not their enemy because I’m a woman who writes ’The Witcher,’” Ms. Hissrich told her followers in a Jan. 12 tweet. “That I’m just a real person.”

On Jan. 13, Mr. Hambly tweeted: “I am certain given any real pushback she would have to publicly denounce me, but if our little back and forth proves to just a few people that folks can disagree and not be totally garbage to each other this was a huge Win.”

Netflix did not respond to a request for comment.

But Mr. Toto, the entertainment writer, said Netflix showrunners often tell fans the opposite of what they end up doing.

He cited the example that Mr. Smith called the “Masters” adaption a “continuation of the story” last summer, repeatedly denying rumors that the main character He-Man would play a minor part in the production. That turned out to be false in the first episode, as Mr. Smith elevated a female character to the lead for half a season.

“The woke masters must be pleased, first and foremost,” Mr. Toto said.