The machinations behind cancel culture are bizarre to say the least, when realistically all it takes is one person with an axe to grind and a decent-sized social media following to get the ball rolling, especially since modern online opinion tends to operate by the ‘guilty until proven innocent’ model.
Even stars regarded as almost entirely wholesome in the eyes of the general public have found themselves targeted on occasion, although it tends to be forgotten swiftly. The internet came to the defense of John Krasinski when he ended up in the crosshairs last year, while there was that one day where Elizabeth Olsen was being branded as a racist, although she wouldn’t have been aware given that she distanced herself from social media after so-called ‘fans’ essentially bullied her offline by swamping her accounts with negative comments because she didn’t post a public tribute to Chadwick Boseman following his passing.
Sebastian Stan is no stranger to the phenomenon, either, with a fleeting attempt to cancel him occurring many months back for something his girlfriend said, and as you can see from the reactions below, somebody managed to get #RIPSebastianStan trending once again last night, which led to false rumors about the actor’s death circulating.
https://twitter.com/mqximqffs/status/1398775093329862656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1398775093329862656%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fscreenrant.com%2Frip-sebastian-stan-trending-cancel-culture-marvel-death%2F
https://twitter.com/FrHilderbrand/status/1398802261283835916?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1398802261283835916%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fscreenrant.com%2Frip-sebastian-stan-trending-cancel-culture-marvel-death%2F
Me checking Twitter to make sure that Sebastian Stan is okay.
#ripsebastianstan pic.twitter.com/kWdnqpm1gp
— In My Mind (@MeAloneInMyMind) May 29, 2021
https://twitter.com/raine22dancerr/status/1398786164983832588
Me searching twitter to find out if sebastian stan is dead or not #ripsebastianstan pic.twitter.com/VqVVyIbCHl
— Pizza Dad (@Pizza__Dad) May 29, 2021
https://twitter.com/stevessheild/status/1398819801120784392
no bc whoever started the hashtag i bet you’re a john walker stan you musty ass #RipSebastianStan pic.twitter.com/RDvPapFfwb
— mai (@i__likewomen) May 30, 2021
Y'all we're mean for this, I freaked out for a moment there #ripsebastianstan pic.twitter.com/YEy7uNxQzs
— Charlie🐝 | she/they/he (@charcharlieeee) May 30, 2021
sebastian when he sees the #RipSebastianStan hashtag is trending pic.twitter.com/aG9cV8sYes
— krist🧚🏼 (@goldloki) May 30, 2021
WHY DID YALL SCARE ME WITH #ripsebastianstan WTF pic.twitter.com/wra8LLZhYB
— rachel (@rachelmohan8) May 30, 2021
https://twitter.com/Louis01509385/status/1398980319806738439
https://twitter.com/natsfiIm/status/1398994309400174593
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier star has won himself a new army of fans thanks to the hit Disney Plus series that showcased his emotional range, not to mention his burgeoning bromance with co-star Anthony Mackie, but being a popular part of a successful TV show from the world’s biggest and most beloved franchise doesn’t insulate anyone from the wrath of a batch of angry keyboard warriors, despite the hashtag circulating for an entirely different reason than the one intended.