James Corden Gets Thrown Under The Bus For Blocking Traffic In A Flash Mob, And More Of This Week's 'One Main Character'
Every day somebody says or does something that earns them the scorn of the internet. Here at Digg, as part of our mission to curate what the internet is talking about right now, we rounded up the main characters on Twitter from this past week and held them accountable for their actions.
This week's characters include a late-night host who blocked traffic in a mouse suit and got dragged by the entire internet, a car mechanic with an ill-advised tweet about his female customers, an oil company that sent "thoughts and prayers" to those affected by Hurricane Ida and a man outraged that his school district is offering free lunches to everyone.
Saturday
James Corden
The character: James Corden, Golden Raspberry Award winner for "Cats," alleged advocate for lowering late night writers' salaries.
The plot: To promote Amazon Prime Video's new movie "Cinderella," James Corden participated in a flash mob, singing and dancing in the middle of traffic and violently thrusting at motorists.
The repercussion: The publicity stunt went viral but backfired spectacularly as hundreds of people on Twitter declared it "the worst thing ever" and dubbed Corden's antics a crime against humanity.
Dishonorable Mention
@KURTspeeds
The character: @KURTSPEEDS, a mechanic who's not a fan of the ladies.
The plot: On Saturday, @KURTSPEEDS posted a photo of severely damaged brake pads and tweeted that he hated "working on cars owned by women." He added, "[I don't know] how half y'all haven't killed yourself on the road yet."
The repercussion: @KURTSpeeds tweet was promptly ratioed into oblivion as women called out the mechanic for making sweeping generalizations about the driving behavior of women when, in fact, men cause the majority of car accidents.
The poorly received tweet provided the perfect publicity for Girls Auto Clinic Repair Center, as they encouraged women to come to them for their car repairs.
Monday
ExxonMobil
The character: ExxonMobil, cartoonishly evil corporate villain.
The plot: As Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana, the Beaumont chapter of ExxonMobil decided to share a tweet sending "thoughts and prayers" to their "Gulf Coast colleagues, friends and neighbors in Louisiana."
The repercussion: Hundreds of Twitter users dunked on the tweet, calling out the oil company for offering paltry support to those in the path of the hurricane while continuing to be one of the largest contributors to climate change.
Wednesday
Michael Petrilli
The character: Michael Petrilli, president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, conservative American nonprofit education policy think tank.
The plot: On Wednesday, Petrilli tweeted that he was appalled that every kid attending Montgomery County Public Schools in Virginia was getting a free lunch, even rich kids.
The repercussion: Petrilli's tweet about free lunches got buried under an avalanche of replies questioning his outrage over a few extra kids getting free chicken nuggets, even though they could afford it.
After being pummeled for his controversial tweet, Petrilli announced he was taking it down.
Read the previous edition of our One Main Character column, which includes the weirdest take about "Ted Lasso" ever.
Did we miss a main character from this week? Please send tips to [email protected].
