Thandiwe Newton Calls Sean Penn a 'Jibbering Fool' for His Recent Comments on Gender

"MF you used to be sexy but now you're just tragic," Newton wrote in response to Penn's thoughts that men in America are becoming "wildly feminized"

Thandie Newton; Sean Penn. Photo: Kurt Krieger/Corbis/Getty Images; Presley Ann/Getty Images

Thandiwe Newton is criticizing Sean Penn for his latest comments about gender.

On Sunday, Newton shared a report on Twitter about Penn's recent interview with The Independent, in which he elaborated on a statement he made earlier this month to U.K. news outlet i, when he said, "I am in the club that believes that men in American culture have become wildly feminized."

In her tweet, the 49-year-old Emmy Award winner criticized Penn's comments, writing: "Dude what are you SAY-ING?? Like for REAL? You're a jibbering FOOL. MF you used to be sexy but now you're just tragic."

Penn's comments came during an interview alongside daughter Dylan Penn for their movie Flag Day. In a follow-up tweet, Newton added: "In front of your DAUGHTER!? That poor little mite. Thank God her Mum's so dope."

She concluded by addressing one of Penn's other recent projects: "Please stop ruining the brilliance of #LicoricePizza with this nonsense."

Newton's criticism comes just days after Penn doubled down on his thoughts surrounding masculinity while speaking with The Independent.

"I think that men have, in my view, become quite feminized," he told the outlet.

He added, "I have these very strong women in my life who do not take masculinity as a sign of oppression toward them. There are a lot of, I think, cowardly genes that lead to people surrendering their jeans and putting on a skirt."

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Sean Penn. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty

Back in 2018, the Oscar winner called the #MeToo movement "too black and white" during an interview with Natalie Morales on Today.

"We don't know what's a fact in many of the cases," he said, adding, "Salacious is as soon as you call something a movement that is really a series of many individual accusers, victims, accusations, some of which are unfounded. The spirit of much of what has been the #MeToo movement is to divide men and women."

Penn said that from the women he's spoken to — "of all walks of life" — he has gathered that "there's a common sense that is not represented at all in the discussion when it comes to the media discussion of it."

"The discussion where 'If Sean Penn says this, so and so is going to attack him for saying this because of that,' " he said. "I'm very suspicious of a movement that gets glommed onto in great stridency and rage and without nuance. And even when people try to discuss it in a nuanced way, the nuance is attacked."