'Anne with an E': Fans get #SaveAnneWithAnnE #Renewannewithane trending on Twitter after CBC-Netflix show is canceled
Aaah fandom... It can be inspiring and toxic, all at the same time.
After Netflix announced on November 25 that the CBC/Netflix show 'Anne with an E' was being canceled after the upcoming Season 3 airs, fans were devastated. Creator and executive producer, Moira Walley-Beckett, confirmed the news on her Instagram page, saying: “I wish it could be different but it cannot. We have reached the end of the red Green Gables road after 3 wonderful seasons.”
Fans then mounted a concerted online campaign, trending the hashtags #Renewannewithane and #SaveAnneWithAnnE to tell CBC and Netflix that it was not ok for them to cancel their favorite show.
The show is an updated adaptation of the beloved 'Anne of Green Gables' book series by Lucy Maud Montgomery with the character of Anne being played by Amybeth McNulty. McNulty has announced on her twitter that she would "live stream" once the tweets hit the 2 million mark, showing her support for the campaign.
A twitter user pointed out how the show deals with current cultural concerns. "The show who covers topics such as homophobia, racism, sexism & injustice while also giving life lessons that are SO important to take in & to realize. It brings awareness to indigenous people, lgbtq ppl, black ppl. Renew it." Another said: "Just a reminder that this show provides important messages and talks about serious issues with such sensibility yet intensity. Our society is in need of an awakening and Anne With An E is capable of that. Don’t give up on it. It didn’t give up on you."
Others wanted the show to end only after the wedding of Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe (portrayed by Lucas J Zumann). A twitter account named "Save Anne with an E" wrote in all caps to get this message across: "We need to see Anne in a wedding dress! We need to see Anne graduating university! We need to see Anne become a teacher and inspire creativity in the next generation! We need to see Anne become a mother! We need to see Anne's dreams come true!" The tweets show that much of Anne's story from the books are yet to be adapted with the Anne Shirley and Gibert Blythe romance storyline getting top priority by "Shirbert" shippers.
However, the toxic nature of the fandom also emerged after Shannon Sullivan posted an Instagram post saying she had to break up with the show's male lead, Lucas J Zumann, because of toxic Shirbert shippers who want Lucas to end up with Amybeth McNulty in real life too. The news rocked the fandom already devasted by the show's cancellation.
@blytheskindred tweeted a screenshot of Shannon's Instagram message (that is now not visible after she activated the private mode on her account) and added a comment: "I feel so sick and embarrassed to be apart of a fandom I’m usually so proud of."
Several Twitter users pointed out the irony of fans of the progressive show targetting a woman for dating the show's lead. One tweet summed it up best, saying: "Imagine calling yourself a fan of Anne with an E, a show that talks about the oppression and freedom of women, and then go and harass a young woman for being with the person she loves. Y'all disgust me."