Twitter Is Debating ‘White Chicks’ as Shows With Blackface Are Being Pulled

With Blackface movies and TV shows back in the news recently, Twitter turned its attention to the 2004 Wayans brothers comedy White Chicks on Wednesday. Social media could not seem to come to a consensus on this oddball movie, with many disagreeing about whether it was a harmful form of representation and, if so, why. In fact, many were preoccupied with their shock at the existence of such a movie at all.

White Chicks was a blockbuster comedy at the height of the Wayans family’s fame, directed by Keenan Ivory Wayans and starring Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans. It centers around two Black FBI agents who go undercover as White women using extensive makeup and disguises. Many critics of the recent backlash against Blackface asked why this case of “Whiteface” was accepted. While most people seemed to agree that there is a big difference between blackface and “Whiteface,” there were plenty of other conversations to be had about White Chicks.

The Wayans brothers play Kevin and Marcus Copeland in White Chicks, FBI agent brothers who disguise themselves as two wealthy socialite sisters that they have been charged with protecting. The movie takes some odd twists and turns, making jokes out of racial stereotypes as well as gender norms and sexual orientations. It was not a critical success in its time, but it has since become a fascinating cultural artifact for many viewers.

Today, the subject matter of White Chicks may be more relevant than ever, between the growing acceptance of transgender people in the public eye and the increasingly outraged sentiment against blackface in entertainment. Some critics have argued that the Wayans’ whiteface is just as harmful to the Black community, while others praise it for being subversive. Few subscribe to the idea that whiteface is harmful to White people in the same way that Blackface is harmful to Black people.

One way or another, just about everyone has something to say about the one-of-a-kind movie that is White Chicks. Here’s a look at how Twitter reacted when the movie came up in the general conversation this week.

Shock

Sarcasm

Double-Standard

Trolling

Scoreboard

Hard to Offend

History