Prepare for your eyes to roll to the back of your head, as Piers Morgan has (unsurprisingly) slammed MTV’s decision to give out a gender neutral award at the MTV TV & Movie Awards.
Emma Watson - an old foe of Piers’ - was handed the landmark gong during the event on Sunday (7 May) night, scooping an acting accolade for her role in ‘Beauty And The Beast’.
However, the decision to include men and women in the Best Actor category - rather than to separate them into gendered categories - clearly irritated Piers, who launched into a tirade about it on Monday’s edition of ‘Good Morning Britain’.
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Piers Morgan launched into a rant on 'Good Morning Britain'
ITV
“Gender neutral awards – just what the world was craving,” he ranted.
“I can’t think of a better recipient than Emma Watson, a great flagbearer to all things gender neutral.”
He continued: “Do we need to have men and women? Shall we call you woes? Woe is me. You become woes. we can’t become men obviously, we become persons. And everything becomes gender neutral.”
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Emma Watson scooped the genderless Best Actor gong at the MTV TV & Movie Awards
Lester Cohen via Getty Images
Piers’ co-host Susanna Reid was much more positive about the move to have men and women competing in the same category, calling it a “stroke of genius” by MTV.
But Piers carried on undeterred, going on to say: “Am I wrong? Is it just me or am I a creaking old dinosaur that doesn’t get it?
“Should we ban the word man from life itself? Should nothing anymore be male or female?
“Little babies just be little babies, no longer boys and girls? Should it all just be ended? Should we end gender as we know it? Is it the end of gender?”
His comments did not sit well with the people of Twitter, either:
During her acceptance speech, Emma said she was honoured to be the first recipient of the genderless award.
“The first acting award in history that doesn’t separate nominees based on their sex says something about how we perceive the human experience,” she said.
“MTV’s move to create a genderless award for acting will mean something different to everyone, but to me it indicates that acting is about the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and that doesn’t need to be separated into two different categories.”
Watson didn't hold back when addressing the Vanity Fair outrage. She told Reuters: “It just always reveals to me how many misconceptions and what a misunderstanding there is about what feminism is.
"Feminism is about giving women choice. Feminism is not a stick with which to beat other women with. It’s about freedom, it’s about liberation, it’s about equality.
"I really don’t know what my tits have to do with it. It’s very confusing." (credit:Vanity Fair)
On beauty standards...(02 of09)
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The actress has spoken out on numerous occasions about the beauty standards that women are held to and is a champion of 'being yourself'.
“I don’t have perfect teeth. I’m not stick thin. I want to be the person who feels great in her body and can say that she loves it and doesn’t want to change anything,” she said.
Working in the film industry, which is undeniably ageist when it comes to women, she said: "I’m excited about the ageing process. I’m more interested in women who aren’t perfect. They’re more compelling." (credit:Karwai Tang via Getty Images)
On involving men in the gender equality fight...(03 of09)
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In 2014, Watson helped launch UN Women's #HeForShe campaign, which encourages men and boys to take action against negative inequalities faced by women and girls.
At the time Watson, who is UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, said: "I am reaching out to you because I need your help. We want to end gender inequality - and to do that we need everyone to be involved. This is the first campaign of its kind at the UN: we want to try and galvanise as many men and boys as possible to be advocates for gender equality. And we don’t just want to talk about it, but make sure it is tangible." (credit:Rob Kim via Getty Images)
On finding feminism...(04 of09)
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Watson said she first started questioning gender-based assumptions when she was eight years old and hasn't looked back since.
"At eight I was confused at being called 'bossy', because I wanted to direct the plays we would put on for our parents - but the boys were not," she recalled in a #HeForShe speech.
She said that aged 14, she began to be "sexualised" by the media, and aged 15 her friends started dropping out of their sports teams because they didn’t want to appear "muscly".
"I decided I was a feminist and this seemed uncomplicated to me," she concluded. (credit:Jim Spellman via Getty Images)
On the gender pay gap...(05 of09)
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Overall, women can expect to earn significantly less than men over their entire careers. According to The Fawcett Society, the current overall pay gap for full time workers is 13.9%.
Discussing this stat, Watson said: "The reality is that if we do nothing, it will take 75 years, or for me to be nearly 100, before women can expect to be paid the same as men, for the same work."
She added: “I think it is right I am paid the same as my male counterparts.” (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
On playing Belle in 'Beauty And The Beast'...(06 of09)
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When you think of feminism, Disney princesses aren't exactly the first (or indeed second) thing that spring to mind. But Watson hopes to change this.
Discussing her character in the remake of Disney classic 'Beauty And The Beast', Watson said that her character takes on the role of inventor, which was Belle's father's role in the original storyline.
She added that Belle is "absolutely a Disney princess, but she's not a passive character - she's in charge of her own destiny". (credit:Barcroft Media via Getty Images)
On battling stereotypes...(07 of09)
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Watson is also a fierce opponent of the stereotypes that hold young women and girls back. She said: "I feel like young girls are told that they have to be a princess and fragile. It’s bullshit. I identify much more with being a warrior – a fighter. If I was going to be a princess, I’d be a warrior princess."
She also previously said that young girls should never 'dumb themselves down' with the aim of being attractive to a guy and added: "Girls should never be afraid to be smart." (credit:Rindoff/Dufour via Getty Images)
On her feminist book club...(08 of09)
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In the spirit of promoting gender equality and championing strong women, Emma Watson launched a feminist book club called "Our Shared Shelf", which is conducted through a group on Goodreads and has more than 37,000 members. In true feminist fashion, the first book Watson chose was Gloria Steinem's memoir 'My Life on the Road'. (credit:VALERIE MACON via Getty Images)
“The minute I stood up and spoke about women’s rights I was immediately threatened,” she said. “This is a real thing that’s happening now, women are receiving threats.”
She said the threats made her even more determined to fight for gender equality. “People thought I’d be disheartened by this, but if anything it made me so much more determined,” she said.