After X-Men ’97 dropped its episodes on Disney+ as a continuation of the adventures of the X-Men from the legendary 90’s animated series, the show was greeted with good reviews. However, some fans appeared to nitpick things to bring up bizarre controversies. For instance, the absurd fashion choices of the flamboyant mutant Gambit.
Sparking culture wars after witnessing Gambit expose his midriff in a crop top, fans of the show not only criticized the costume choice but also began questioning the character’s sexuality. But, after the mutant’s fashion and sexuality became a controversial topic, the actor – A. J. LoCascio, who voiced the character, came out with the cheekiest response to the criticism.
Fans are Outraged by Gambit’s Fashion Choice in X-Men ’97
The new series X-Men ’97 hit Disney+ as a revival of the old show X-Men: The Animated Series, which aired till 1997. Bringing back the iconic mutant characters after a couple of decades, the show opened to great response from audiences and critics alike. However, while the nostalgic take and the storyline were hailed by fans, a few of them took offense at Gambit’s fashion.
Despite the show getting a largely positive reception as per Empire, fans surprisingly began picking at the fan-favorite character Gambit. Claiming that, since the show is set in the ’90s, people began slamming the flirtatious mutant character’s costume as not only pretty funky for that era but also inappropriate.
After getting a glimpse of Gambit in the kitchen wearing a pink crop top showing off his washboard abs, in To me, my X-Men episode, the outfit choice, unfortunately, started prompting some bad reactions from people. A few people interpreted that the character’s sexuality has been depicted as gay, others were simply shocked by the fashion choice.
As per Unilad, the X-Men ’97 series has previously been subject to ‘culture wars’, as a few fans believed that the new iteration aimed for ‘woke‘ culture. Therefore, after witnessing Gambit in a pink crop top, people started guessing that perhaps the show aimed for a metaphor to showcase the struggle for LGBTQ+ rights, where the ‘mutants’ represented the LGBTQ+ community being ostracized by society.
Voice Actor A. J. LoCascio’s Response to the Controversy
The culture war and controversies regarding Gambit’s fashion choice in X-Men ’97 went on for a long time, and it’s still prevailing as a conversation starter on social media, surrounding the show. While a few people showed their love towards the flamboyant mutant, others simply called out the character’s sexuality. Meanwhile, witnessing the uproar around Gambit, voice actor A. J. LoCascio had the best response.
Gonna need this shirt & to stop eating pizza for about 3 months to wear it. https://t.co/TAH9P4xEnz
— AJ LoCascio🦇🎃 (@AJLoCascio) March 20, 2024
Being the actor behind the voice of Gambit in X-Men ’97, A. J. LoCascio addressed the online attention and drama surrounding his character. Therefore, after replacing Chris Potter as Gambit from the original series, LoCascio took to his Twitter account to express his positive reaction to Gambit’s new outfit. Sharing a screenshot of his character’s outfit online, the actor expressed his desire to get a version of the shirt for himself.
Gambit voice actor @AJLoCascio attends Wondercon wearing the crop top Gambit wears in #XMen97. pic.twitter.com/MyQXd10e8q
— X-Men Updates (@XMenUpdate) March 31, 2024
Although A. J. LoCascio’s tweet was enough to shut down haters, what he did next was absolutely mind-blowing. According to a tweet shared by X-Men Updates, the actor appeared at the WonderCon 2024 at the Anaheim Convention Center, wearing the exact crop top that Gambit wore in the show. Personally wearing the outfit to shut down the controversies surrounding the sexuality of his character, LoCascio sported the pink crop top like a stud.
X-Men ’97 is available on Disney+.
