
(Photo: Netflix)
Selena Gomez’s smash hit 13 Reasons Why garnered heated debate over its portrayal of mental health issues, and now To the Bone, starring Lily Collins, seems set to face similar criticisms.
To the Bone follows the story of Ellen (Collins), 20, as she makes yet another attempt to gain control over her anorexia by checking into an unconventional group home for youth. The feature-length movie, which premiered earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival, will stream on Netflix on July 14, but the recently released trailer already has some viewers concerned about how the film is depicting eating disorders.
Hoping “To The Bone” will be eye opening and helpful rather than triggering and glamourising anorexia
— ells (@EllaChaston) June 21, 2017
my dads response to 13 Reasons Why and To The Bone pic.twitter.com/CTZ2oW92Ab
— jackson (@soongrowtired) June 22, 2017
i really hope To The Bone doesn’t romanticize eating disorders because there’s NOTHING romantic about having an ED
— lina #LookAtUsNow (@geminially) June 22, 2017
Netflix’s To The Bone is a prime example of companies exploiting severe mental illnesses, using the same old white manic pixie trope.
— Jemimah Eden Vaughan (@jemimahvaughan) June 20, 2017
i can see what netflix are trying to do with To The Bone but i can see it causing more harm than good
— nic (@circasIaves) June 20, 2017
Well Lilly Collins actually had ED so I think/hope this will be pretty realistic. But my main fear is Netflix romanticising MI (again)…
— bab. (@magic_grey) June 20, 2017
Collins has spoken about her history with eating disorders, getting particularly candid in her book Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me, which also came out earlier this year. To the Bone‘s writer and director Marti Noxon also spent much of her young adult life battling anorexia bulimia and used that experience to create the film. In light of the controversy that the movie has already garnered, Noxon tweeted a statement, explaining that the creators behind the film spoke with numerous eating disorder survivors and spoke with Project HEAL, a campaign dedicated to raising funds to help patients afford treatment. “I hope that by casting a little light into the darkness of this disease we can achieve greater understanding and guide people to help if they need it,” wrote Noxon in her tweet, which has since been retweeted 1,800 times.
#ToTheBone @netflix pic.twitter.com/ULlsJco3oV
— marti noxon (@martinoxon) June 23, 2017
Despite Noxon’s good intentions, some Twitter users pointed out that because of the sensitive nature of the movie, the trailer should have carried a trigger warning—a major point of contention with 13 Reasons Why. [Note: The Twitter moment about To the Bone warns viewers that it “may contain sensitive content”]
shout out to @eleanorrthomas for giving me the heads up about To The Bone so I could prepare myself/avoid it as necessary to protect myself
— bee (@beemaybishop) June 22, 2017
i hope that when “to the bone” debuts on netflix that it comes with a trigger warning about EDs https://t.co/0ezzOvyYYG
— Taylor Trudon (@taylortrudon) June 20, 2017
Despite the backlash, there are other users who saw the trailer and have hope that To the Bone will help open up the discussion and awareness surrounding eating disorders.
it honestly weird to see people upset about to the bone. as someone who has struggled with and ed i see it as we are finally talking about-
— dora (@gracedora_) June 22, 2017
it and not making it a taboo topic. it’s something so many mean women and now children struggle with. this is the kind of negative
— dora (@gracedora_) June 22, 2017
(By “mean,” @gracedora_ clarified that she meant “men.”)
reaction people had to 13 reasons why but guess what, we started talking about suicide and helping prevent it. if something is triggering
— dora (@gracedora_) June 22, 2017
to you, simply distance yourself. if the urge to trigger yourself or relapse happens, call the NEDA (800) 931-2237.
— dora (@gracedora_) June 22, 2017
According to the National Eating Disorder Information Centre, an estimated 600,000 to 990,000 Canadians are living with some form of eating disorder at any given time. The organization notes that the number of people effected by this mental health condition exceed the total population of Prince Edward Island, Nunavut, Yukon, and Newfoundland and Labrador combined.
With the film set to start streaming on Netflix in the coming weeks, it’s clear that there will be many more conversations—and likely controversy—to come.
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, please contact the National Eating Disorder Information Centre: 416-340-4156 (GTA), 1-866-633-4220 (toll-free), or email: nedic@uhn.ca.
Related:
Does ‘13 Reasons Why‘ Trivialize Suicide? We Asked a Psychiatrist
‘13 Reasons Why‘ Season Two: What We Know So Far
Victoire Dauxerre Interview: How Modelling Nearly Killed Her