Hugh Bonneville fears cancellation by ‘mob’ is now ‘instant’

Hugh Bonneville fears that cancellation by a “mob” will now be “instantaneous”.

The 60-year-old ‘Downton Abbey’ actor plays a grumpy ‘dinosaur’ news anchor in the upcoming TV series ‘Douglas is Cancelled’, and ahead of its first episode airing on Thursday (27.06.24), he warned that so-called ‘cancel culture’ is now at a dangerous level as it is fuelled by the ‘astonishing speed’ of mainstream and social media.

He told The Herald newspaper when asked what the ITV series had to say about the cancellation trend: “It’s very interesting to see how it plays out. Cancel culture has existed since the word scapegoat was used in the Bible to refer to people excluded from society because they do not hold generally accepted views. It has always been present around us, this is nothing new. »

“What is different today is that the crowd attack is now instantaneous. The speed at which truth and lies accelerate through mainstream and social media is exponential and extraordinary.

“In the same way that a metaphorical corpse can be mutilated and trampled by an anonymized crowd by fingers typing at lightning speed: ‘Well, I’ve killed that one a few times.’ Who’s next?'”

Written by “Doctor Who” showrunner Steven Moffat, 62, “Douglas is Cancelled” follows Hugh’s beloved newsreader Douglas, who is canceled because of a misogynistic joke he’s overheard telling at a wedding. His wife is a deformed tabloid editor, and their daughter is a “woke” 19-year-old who repeatedly talks about “microaggression.”

Besides cancel culture, the show also references the #MeToo movement, gender dynamics in the workplace, and young people on social media.

Hugh added of his character: “Douglas is a perfectly honest, nice man who does a good job and is very well liked for what he does. He means it too.

“Even when a few years ago he welcomed a young colleague, Madeline, onto the couch next to him, he felt safe, reassured that the warm, uncle-like relationship he had with his protégée posed no threat to his own position.”

Speaking of Douglas’s complacency, Hugh added: “I wouldn’t say that. Certainly unreservedly confident. But, just as the dinosaurs didn’t know they were an endangered species, Douglas blithely ignores that the next generation is smarter, more resourceful and capable of absolute cruelty when things go wrong. Or when wrongs haven’t been righted.

“That’s his blind spot. His fatal flaw. That’s what’s at the heart of his character. Pride.

He added about the show and its themes: “It touches on a lot of hot topics in terms of views on ethics, behavior in the workplace and in our society at large, what we can and can’t say, what we can and can’t do, what’s acceptable, what’s beyond the limit.”