Dreyfuss Has Bigoted Senior Moment on Stage
Yet another Hollywood has been is indulging in a very public, very bigoted rant about trans people, among other things. I say let’s cancel Mr. Holland and the Opus he rode in on.
Humor, by Alyssa Steinsiek
Hey, do you guys remember Jaws?
You know, ‘75 Spielberg flick about a big ass shark eating people on a New England beach, created the concept of a summer blockbuster, the highest grossing film ever made until Star Wars dethroned it in ‘77. Yeah, you remember Jaws!
Now, do you remember Richard Dreyfuss? He’s the actor who played Matt Hooper, the oceanographer who helps identify and track down the aforementioned big ass shark. After Jaws, Dreyfuss went on to star in other iconic films like Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Stand by Me, and my personal favorite, Mr. Holland’s Opus. If you’re one of our younger readers and you don’t recognize Dreyfuss or any of the movies I just mentioned, that’s fine; his work over the last twentyish years hasn’t been super noteworthy. Richard Dreyfuss is firmly cemented as a ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s star.
Anyway, what I wanted to tell you is that he’s a real Dick.
The particulars of the situation are a touch unclear, but here’s what I know: Over the Memorial Day weekend, ol’ Dick Dreyfuss appeared at a sold out Beverly, Massachusetts, screening of the classic summer blockbuster Jaws. The screening was held at Beverly’s Cabot Theater, and included a Q&A session with Dreyfuss.
What a treat!
At least, until Dreyfuss came out on stage wearing a dress and dancing to Taylor Swift’s “Love Song.” That’s right, Swifties, this old man has denigrated your idol’s great work. Get him! Show him you mean business, ladies! Nobody comes for the queen and lives to tell the tale!
Sorry. Back to The Dreyfuss Incident.
Listen, if it ended with a weird shuffling dance in a hideous floral dress to a Taylor Swift song, I wouldn’t even be talking about Richard Dreyfuss. I’d be very curious about what the old man was trying to say, staggering around the stage like a very old, very drunk frat boy wearing a dress he thoughtlessly pilfered from his mother’s closet. But I wouldn’t feel the need to express that curiosity publicly.
Of course, it didn’t end there. Once Dreyfuss stripped out of his babydoll—don’t worry, he was wearing a classic old guy’s ill-fitting button up and slacks beneath the dress, and he later put on a suit jacket for some reason—he went on a bit of a rant, according to social media posters. We don’t have any footage of the screed right now, but we do have some secondhand accounts of Dreyfuss’s alleged axe grinding sesh.
Apparently, Dreyfuss’ rambling covered such timely topics as the #MeToo movement, which hasn’t been a topic of discussion since 2017; the fact that Barbra Streisand is a genius who shouldn’t be listened to because she’s a woman; and, of course, mocking the idea of “some ten year old who says they want to be a boy instead of a girl.”
No surprise to see misogyny and transphobia hand-in-hand, as usual.
I don’t know where Dreyfuss’ old washed up ass thinks he can get off talking shit about trans kids, but according to that secondhand account, the crowd were “shouting at him” and many attendees walked out of the screening before the movie had even begun. Like most weirdos with transphobic brain rot, a need to rant about our very existence completely overtook Dreyfuss’ work for the evening and repulsed an entire crowd of onlookers.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, J. Casey Soward, the executive director of The Cabot, said, “We are aware of, and share serious concerns, following the recent event with Richard Dreyfuss prior to a screening of the film Jaws … The views expressed by Mr. Dreyfuss do not reflect the values of inclusivity and respect that we uphold as an organization. We deeply regret the distress that this has caused to many of our patrons.”
Sword also said that The Cabot “[takes] full responsibility for the oversight in not anticipating the direction of the conversation and for the discomfort it caused to many patrons,” which is sort of refreshing. These days I expect venues to defend their repugnant guests’ honor by invoking the right to “free speech,” so The Cabot directly disowning Dreyfuss’ crap is a breath of fresh air.
I’d love to tell you what the man himself has to say about the incident, but Richard Dreyfuss isn’t exactly a social media magnate. His last tweet was in April, promoting his Cameo where you can book a personal video with the aged star for five hundred dollars if you feel so inclined.
Personally, I’d recommend against it!
Alyssa Steinsiek is a professional writer and video games nerd who cohosts a podcast about trans news!
