Former President Barack Obama is currently receiving backlash for a new Netflix film, which he served as a consultant on, over a scene that openly bashes white people by warning against trusting them.
According to Newsweek, Obama, who previously signed a Netflix deal to produce television series and films for the streaming giant and launched the Higher Ground production company with Michelle Obama, recently worked as a consultant on the film, “Leave the World Behind.” The film, which was directed by Sam Esmail, was based on Rumaan Alam’s novel, which was also titled “Leave the World Behind.”
Netflix’s synopsis of the movie states, “Starring Julia Roberts, Mahershala Ali, and Ethan Hawke, the apocalyptic thriller from Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail tells the story of two families as they fight for survival amid an inexplicable blackout.” Both Barack Obama and Michelle Obama are listed as producers for the film.
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According to The Western Journal, the controversy surrounding the film centers around a scene where a daughter tells her father, “I’m asking you to remember that if the world falls apart, trust should not be doled out easily to anyone, especially white people.”
A video clip of the was shared Libs of TikTok on X, formerly Twitter, alongside the caption, “Netflix film called ‘Leave The World Behind’ produced by the Obamas includes a scene demonizing white people. White people are the only group you’re allowed and celebrated to be racist towards and it will be put into movies by the most influential people.”
End Wokeness also shared the video clip from “Leave the World Behind” on social media, questioning the film for potentially featuring “predictive programming” by centering the plot around a cyberattack that “cripples” the United States and warning that the Obamas were able to “sneak in a scene bashing white people.”
According to Newsweek, the Obamas agreed to help produce the film last year, allowing the former president to offer his advice regarding the portrayal of events in the movie.
Vanity Fair reported that Esmail consulted with Obama while developing the script for the movie in an attempt to help “ground” the story.
“He had a lot [of] notes about the characters and the empathy we would have for them,” Esmail told Vanity Fair regarding Obama’s involvement as a consultant and producer for the film. “I have to say he is a big movie lover, and he wasn’t just giving notes about things that were from his background. He was giving notes as a fan of the book, and he wanted to see a really good film.”
