Marilyn Manson took to Instagram to tease new music (Picture: Getty Images)
Despite what your uncle may say after his third pint during an otherwise peaceful family dinner, cancel culture has not ‘gone way too far.’
In fact, given that alleged abuser Marilyn Manson has just signed a new record deal, it’s fair to say that cancel culture has not gone far enough.
The heavy metal rocker, 55, (real name Brian Hugh Warner) has reportedly signed a new deal with independent metal record label Nuclear Blast, despite the bevvy of sexual abuse allegations brought against him since 2021 – accusations that many diehard fans bemoan as cancel culture destroying the reputation of an innocent man.
Many feel that the phenomenon of canceling a celebrity is overly punitive and unjust and that internet discourse has created a world in which people are tried unfairly in the court of public opinion.
In reality, after centuries of powerful people getting to operate with relative impunity thanks to their high societal statuses, cancel culture is an attempt to simply hold people accountable for their actions.
Unfortunately, it not only isn’t the powerful, insidious phenomenon people think it is, it’s also very ineffective.
Actress Evan Rachel Wood accused the singer of ape, torture, and threats (Picture: Sipa/REX/Shutterstock)
The rocker has continued to find success despite allegations (Picture: Getty Images)
In 2021 Warner’s ex-fiancee, Evan Rachel Wood, 36, accused him of rape, torture, and threats, abuse that took place over the four years they were together. Wood was 19 and Manson was 36 when the couple met.
Separate claims of abuse from at least 12 different women have also been levelled at Warner.
He has consistently denied all of the claims, stating in a since-deleted Instagram post that his ‘intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners.’
Warner’s other accusers include two of his other ex-girlfriends, Game of Thrones actress Esme Bianco and Ashley Morgan Smithline. Both women filed lawsuits against the singer, with Smithline’s eventually being dismissed and Bianco’s settled out of court in 2023.
His former assistant has also accused him of abuse and recently won an appeal after her case was originally dismissed in 2022.
12 women have accused Marilyn Manson of sexual misconduct(Picture: Getty Images)
Another accuser, known only as Jane Doe, filed a suit against the singer in 2023 but the was settled a week before it was set to go to trial.
While one might think the sheer number of accusations made against Warner would speak for themselves, the singer continues to successfully draw crowds. He’s set to support fellow heavy rockers Five Finger Death Punch on their upcoming American tour, and based on his recent Instagram post, he’s also set to release new music soon.
The post depicts Warner posing with an apple as a snippet of a new song plays. At the end of the song, his whispered voice says, ‘Keep sleeping, I’ll make you dream of me.’
Fans have excitedly reacted to the possibility of new music from the singer, either choosing to ignore the allegations made against Manson or even, in some cases, defiantly acknowledging them and lauding the rocker anyway.
Warner’s comeback and continued support from fans and the music industry is just another example of a supposedly cancelled celebrity facing very little actual cessation in popularity.
Kanye West, whose controversial comments and actions are too many to count, has also supposedly been cancelled by the ‘woke mob,’ according to his many diehard fans. But that didn’t stop him from topping the charts just weeks ago.
Comedian Louis CK, who faced multiple claims of sexual misconduct from several women in 2017, sold out Madison Square Garden just last year and won a Grammy for best comedy album in 2022.
Louis CK has continued to sell out arenas despite supposedly being cancelled (Picture: Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock)
Cristiano Ronaldo was accused of raping a woman in a hotel room in 2009, an allegation he denied despite later admitting ‘she said stop and no multiple times.’ He remains one of the most highly-paid and admired athletes in the world.
In many cases, particularly in those involving accusations of sexual assault, those who speak out against a powerful person end up not only going through the horrific ordeal of having to relive their trauma, but face public backlash.
A study last year found that while the #MeToo movement has put pressure on women to report their experiences of abuse, they often face victimisation and shaming in the wake of speaking out.
Realistically, being cancelled is just another word for famous people’s wrongdoings being publicly aired – often to little or no effect beyond harm to the very people the phenomenon is meant to empower.
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