Margot Robbie's Vanity Fair profile causes outrage; Profile condemned for ridiculing actress and Australia

A Margot Robbie profile in Vanity Fair has sparked tremendous outrage and anger for being allegedly sexist and patronising. Social media users are venting out their frustration, condemning the article for emphasising on Robbie's appearance instead of her talents and for its weird descriptions of the actress’ native Australia.

Contributing editor Rich Cohen, in his August cover story, described Australia as “America 50 years ago, sunny and slow, a throwback, which is why you go there for throwback people.” Cohen also described Robbie’s hometown Gold Coast as “a city on Australia's Pacific shore, 500 miles north of Sydney.”

“They still live and die with the plot turns of soap operas in Melbourne and Perth, still dwell in a single mass market in Adelaide and Sydney. In the morning, they watch Australia's Today show. In other words, it's just like America, only different ... Now and then, she stayed with cousins who lived in the hinterland of the hinterland, where there really were kangaroos and a dingo really will eat your baby,” Cohen writes in the Vanity Fair story.

In his opening paragraph, Cohen called Robbie a “blonde but dark at the roots” and that she is tall only with the help of her shoes. He went on to describe “The Legend of Tarzan” actress as an ambitious Australian who “views Hollywood the way the Martians view Earth at the beginning of ‘The War of the Worlds.’”

According to Cohen, Robbie is “beautiful, not in that otherworldly, catwalk way but in a minor knock-around key” but is “sexy and composed even while naked but only in character.”

The article has caused an outbreak of activity on social media, with #MargotRobbie trending and one of the most tweeted topics of the day. Many of the tweets expressed shock and disappointment over the article. Some pointed out the patronising nature of the article, showcasing Australia as a backward nation, and insulting Australians as a whole. They felt the writer insulted the nation in the guise of a backhanded compliment.

Here’s how people reacted to the ridiculed Vanity Fair article.