Nolte: Variety’s Taliban Want Woody Allen and Johnny Depp Erased from French Mural

VENICE, ITALY - SEPTEMBER 06: Johnny Depp signs autographs on the red carpet ahead of the
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

Far-left Variety is now so damaged by Woke McCarthyism that, just like the Taliban, it’s openly calling for the erasure of “problematic” art.

Even during the original McCarthy era, I know no instance where an outlet at the level of a Variety  demanded a piece of art be vandalized — or as Variety put it: “amended.”

This is how fascist and full of themselves the Woke Gestapo have become — they’re now publicly and proudly shaming a private business in a foreign country for not joining the American witch hunt, for a mural that includes the likenesses of Woody Allen, Gerard Depardieu, and Johnny Depp.

The message is not even subtle, especially the closing line: “For now, at this popular pizzeria, [Johnny Depp’s depiction] isn’t going anywhere.”

“For now.”

Don’t you just love that? For now.

Monsters.

As you’ll read below, this isn’t journalism. This is a blatant act of, Hey, that’s a nice pizzeria you got there, be a shame if anything happened to it…

Oh, and it took three of Variety’s fascist bullies to write this piece — a piece filled with factual errors. But the lies are deliberate. You see, this isn’t about truth or journalism, and it sure isn’t about protecting artistic freedom and integrity. No, this is about proving your own purity by threatening and punishing those who refuse to conform.

“What Are Woody Allen, Johnny Depp and Gerard Depardieu Doing in Cannes? Inside a Problematic Pizzeria Mural,” reads the headline…

The portrait is on the restaurant’s second floor, opposite sweeping views of the French Riviera. As guests snack on plates of pasta and creamy burrata, they can’t help but make eye contact with an illustrated [Woody] Allen (who was accused of rape by his then 7-year-old adoptive daughter, Dylan, in 1992) seen playing the clarinet. Bug-eyed and larger than life, the image of Depardieu (who is under investigation in Paris in a case of alleged rape and sexual assault) appears at the forefront of the painting, only a few inches below a rendering of Sharon Stone, depicted with ample cleavage.

[…]

Depp — currently on trial in Virginia n a $50 million defamation case against his ex-wife Heard — lost a 2020 libel trial in the U.K. where Depp sued a tabloid for labeling him as a “wife beater.”

Let’s start with the basics…

First off, not one of these artists has been convicted of anything, and until you are convicted, you are innocent — at least that’s what decent people believe.

Secondly, it is a flat-out lie to claim Woody Allen was accused of rape. He was not accused of rape. He was never accused of rape. Furthermore, after two separate states launched in-depth, months-long investigations into Allen, no evidence was found  — none — to even bring charges against the man.

Woody Allen is innocent.

Third, Johnny Depp is not “on trial.”  That is another goddamned lie. You are not “on trial” in a civil suit, much less a civil suit where you are the plaintiff. Depp is looking to clear his name, and from what I’ve seen, he has a pretty good case.

Fourth, Depardieu has not even been charged, much less convicted.

Finally, even if all three men were tried and convicted of every allegation leveled against them, who do these intolerant, backward, reactionary Variety zealots think they are shaming someone else over their art choices, over who they choose to honor?

Get a load of this beauty…

The [pizzeria] mural stands in conflict with recent changes trying to be implemented at the Cannes Film Festival, which has attempted to become more inclusive to women and people of color (although progress has been slow). Festival organizers are making efforts to catch up to the industry at large, which has attempted to implement sweeping changes in the era of #MeToo.

Oh, fuck you, you uptight fanatics.

And, of course, because McCarthyism wouldn’t be McCarthyism without a grilling, these three Variety bullies forced the pizzeria manager to explain himself and asked about “amending” the mural.

That’s Variety’s NewSpeak for vandalizing someone else’s art: “amending.”

This isn’t CNN or the Washington Post or the New York Times or NPR; this is The Entertainment Bible threatening a pizzeria in France over the depictions of three undeniable artists — artists who have been found guilty of nothing.

And even if they had been found guilty, what kind of degenerate snitch does something like this?

Of all outlets, Variety should be vehemently, unapologetically, and forcefully protecting artistic freedom and choice, not threatening some little pizzeria with bankruptcy.

And here’s the other thing… the most important thing… If this pizzeria’s walls were slathered with depictions of actual criminals, of bonafide mass murderers like Mao, Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, and Vladimir Lenin, Variety would think nothing of it. 

Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.

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