Kristen Stewart's queerness is the least interesting thing about her. The 33-year old actor, who's seen the best and worst that fame can bring you, has blossomed into a character performer that directors all over the world wish to work with. Getting her fame with a big budget franchise (where my Twight fans at?), Kristen has moved on to the indie, rarely appearing in studio films that are “Hollywood”. But regardless of her massive body of work with independent filmmakers, and accolades from world cinema, it her gender identity and sexuality that people seem to care about. Because why let a celebrity, even though she's just a woman, explore her own sexuality in her art and her life?
Which brings us to the recent stir her Rolling Stone magazine cover has seemed to create. The main criticisms around it is the fact that she's presented as anything but the perceived idea of feminine. “She's trying to be a man”, read some comments and to that we say, if KStew wanted to be a man, we'll slap our thighs and call her "Daddy" because she has every right to be whatever she wants to be.
But not this cover. This cover is an artistic representation of all the forms female sexuality can take. Addressing her critics directly, Kristen said, “It's a little ironic because I feel like I've seen like a lot of male pubic hair on the cover of things I've seen, like a lot of hands in pants and, like, unbuttoned. I think there's a certain overt acknowledgement of like, a female sexuality that is, you know, has its own volition in a way that is annoying for people who are sexist and homophobic." Responding to the comments calling the cover “revealing” and “inappropriate”, violating like public expectations of female sexuality, she said, “Yes, because females sexuality isn't supposed to actually want anything, but to be had. And that (the cover theme) feels like it's protruding in a way that might be annoying.” Followed by a bleeped out F-You, KStew said so much in so little words and props to her for that.
This isn't a one-off incident either. KStew has faced A LOT of criticism and negativity in some circles for her openness about her sexuality. Coming out as queer, she encountered backlash and prejudice from certain sections of her fan base and beyond. Despite this, she has remained steadfast in her authenticity, advocating for LGBTQIA+ rights and visibility. Her openness about her sexuality has opened up conversations about acceptance and representation within society for queer people who have a lot of eyes on them, and not all of them necessarily having good intentions. Can we let art be art and artists be artists? Especially when they're the subject of one the most exciting cover releases of the year!