Netflix’s Original Film ‘Tall Girl’ Sparks One Specific Reaction From Viewers Online

Netflix released another new movie on Friday that had viewers talking on Twitter as they watched it. In Tall Girl, Ava Michelle plays a 16-year-old high schooler who is insecure about her height. There was one particular detail that seemed to annoy Netflix viewers though, as it appears the filmmakers used some sleight of hand to make Michelle’s character appear even taller.

The film, written by Sam Wolfson and directed by Nzingha Stewart, features Michelle as Jodi Kreyman, a self-conscious high schooler who stands 6’1″. Griffin Gluck co-stars as her best friend Jack, and Sabrina Carpenter plays her pageant queen older sister, Harper. The rest of the cast includes Paris Berelc, Luke Eisner, Clara Wilsey, Angelika Washington, Rico Paris, Agela Kinsey and Steve Zahn.

Even before the film was released, it was controversial online because it suggested that a thin, white girl from an affluent family was a victim of discrimination. That response drew counter-criticism from those who were bullied for being tall in high school.

However, once people saw the movie, there was another strange aspect to it all that popped out for many viewers, notes Cosmopolitan. Somehow, the film’s casting team populated the entire high school with people shorter than Michelle, so no one appears to be at the same eye level as the actress. How did that work out? It left plenty of people on Twitter asking the same question.

In an interview with Teen Vogue, Michelle discussed her own battle with embracing her height in real life.

“My generation needs this movie to know that they can love themselves, and that the things people say don’t define them,” Michelle told the magazine. “We might not like these things [about ourselves], but they are what make us different and special.”

Michelle, who appeared on Dance Moms and So You Think You Can Dance, said her height made her the target of bullies.

“My height was really hard for me growing up. Like, I was 5’10” at 13. I was really, really tall. In the business that I was in, and even just being in school, I was made fun of, and it was really difficult. But ironically, I got my first huge [acting gig] partly because of the thing I hated about myself for so long,” Michelle told Teen Vogue.

Getting the Tall Girl role helped build her confidence.

“I would get so many no’s in dance auditions, and a lot of times it would just come down to my height. You can’t do anything about that, so let’s just embrace it. That’s going to be the one thing that gets you to where you are meant to be,” Michelle said. “My mom was always the one telling me that. Did I believe her every time? No, but I do now.”

Tall Girl is now streaming on Netflix.

Photo credit: Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images