Actors are constantly being criticized for their roles, regardless of how good their performance is. Photo Courtesy of IMDb

People need to learn how to distinguish between the actor and the character they play. 

In many scenarios, actors find themselves facing hate for a character that they played, especially if that character wasn’t a good person. The problem is that the actor has nothing to do with their character, but is faced with the dislike that an audience has for the character. 

If anything, the actor should be applauded for being able to act out a negative character so well – especially because it tends to be out of many people’s comfort zone to take on the role of a dangerous persona. 

While some argue that acting isn’t a hard job, filming takes many hours, and actors have to learn lines and get into character for the best performance possible. 

After his role as Jeffrey Dahmer in the show Dahmer, Evan Peters expressed how acting like Dahmer affected his mental state. Acting like the serial killer put him in a depressed and paranoid state, truly displaying how much of an impact acting as a certain person can be. 

Similarly, Penn Badgley received hatred for his role as Joe Goldberg, a fictional serial killer in the series You. Just as Peters did, Badgley expressed a dislike to the character that he played. 

Just because an actor takes on a role does not mean they particularly like the character. 

The work that actors put into studying their designated role to get in character should be applauded, not criticized. Especially if the role is representing a real person, much goes into replicating their mannerisms and mindset. 

If an actor does well exhibiting their character’s traits, it means they did well in their part of telling the story, not that they represent the character in reality.