HBO Max Dud “Velma” Facing More Backlash Over Insensitive Sickle Cell Joke

The HBO Max cartoon was slammed Velma The show is again receiving harsh criticism. This time, it’s not just the average reviewer or person who found it unwatchable and unfunny. The series has been called out for insensitive humor about sickle cell disease which they didn’t wait long to deliver. Fred was the one to tell the joke in episode 1.

Velma (Mindy Kaling) scrolls longingly through Daphne’s social media photos in Velma Season 1 Episode 3 “Velma Kai” (2023), HBO Max

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Encountering Velma for the first time, he can’t remember her name so Fred explains his problem is a disease like the mentioned illness of anemia: “I have a disease where I can’t recognize people who aren’t hot,” He said. “My doctor says it’s basically sickle cell for rich people.” Velma simply replied, “Velma, you just plainly say that.” “Is it called rudeness?”

Before that, Velma who’s voiced by executive producer Mindy Kaling reveals Fred cheats off her in Spanish class because he thinks she is Mexican. Fred’s reply delivered by Glenn Howerton was, “It is [rudeness]! You’re, like, smart.” Although the writers thought it was funny, no one is laughing, or even giggling as much as they could, especially for those with sickle cell disease.

Velma (Mindykaling), confronts Fred (Glenn Howerton), about his chauvinistic behaviour in Velma Season 1 episode 4 “Velma Makes a List” (2023), HBO Max

Twitter user @Mej99 shared a recording of this scene and reacted to it in a thread. “#SickleCell isn’t some punchline to put in an @hbomax show. We are discriminated against in healthcare, which causes further harm to our physical & mental. Ignorant jokes like this make it that much harder for systemic changes to occur for better treatment of sickle cell patients,” She started.

#SickleCell isn’t some punchline to put in an @hbomax show. We are discriminated against in healthcare, which causes further harm to our physical & mental. Ignorant jokes like this make it that much harder for systemic changes to occur for better treatment of sickle cell patients pic.twitter.com/kWpzAhiPnb

— Memej🙋🏿‍♀️ (@Memej99) January 30, 2023

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She then called out Kaling directly by adding, “@mindykaling, what might’ve started out as a harmless joke, turned out to show a lack of empathy, compassion for & knowledge of #sicklecelldisease. It prevents others from learning what #scd TRULY is, a rare #blooddisorder affecting All races, predominantly African Americans.” Others point out there is no relation between sickle cell and rudeness.

@memej99 tweets at Mindy Kaling about Velma via Twitter

“This makes absolutely no sense, and to associate sickle cell to ‘rudeness’ is extremely harmful,” wrote Andre Marcel Harris to HBO Max’s Twitter account. “Sickle cell patients are disproportionately impacted by racism and bias due to the majority of us in the US being Black, and this definitely isn’t helping the issue.”

Harris notes a bit later how “incredibly unfunny” the joke is.

Twitter user Andre Marcel Harris tweets disapproval of Velma

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Sickle Cell 101, a nonprofit devoted to awareness of the disease, paid attention to the controversy and entered the chat. The organization asked its social media followers if the moment was “offensive” and a “bad joke.”

Hot-take answers ranged from “terrible” and “ridiculous” to “not funny at all” and, yes, “very offensive” to people living with the disorder.

Thoughts? Offensive? Bad joke? #sicklecell #Velma #HBOMax pic.twitter.com/tWTZHajoVb

— Sickle Cell 101 (@sicklecell101) January 29, 2023

YouTuber Atraes gave his analysis of the situation in a recent video and he wasn’t prepared for how obnoxiously tone-deaf the dialogue in the scene was. After reading it from a Yahoo article, the podcaster was stunned into silence.

“You needed a moment of silence for how bad that joke was,” he said after a prolonged facepalming. “I didn’t even realize how gross [it was].”

What’s your reaction? Tell us below.

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