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PETA tells the director of Toy Story 4 that Bo Peep's cruel crook is a crock
While some fans are loving the new look of Bo Peep, who is about to make her epic return in Pixar's Toy Story 4, not everyone is happy to see her holding on to her trademark accessory. PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) are not happy that Bo Peep is still using her archaic crook.
In a statement to the film's director, Josh Cooley, PETA lay out their case. They begin by writing that they are all huge fans of the franchise before they get down to the business of Bo Peep's new look.
"Given that she was designed to have a 'modern' look, why hasn’t she 'lost' that outdated and cruel crook?" they write. "You may not know that these 'shepherd’s crooks,' are used solely to hook a sheep’s neck and force these gentle animals to move. That isn’t something that a progressive Bo Peep would countenance in 2019! A 'badass' Bo Peep would likely bop the shearers, not the sheep."
Though seen in the above image, here's another look at Bo Peep's new look, which definitely resembles Daisy Ridley (Rey) in Star Wars: The Force Awakens more than a little bit, pose included:
Lauren Thomasson of PETA goes on to write about how they are trying to change the way people "regard and treat" animals, and this of course includes sheep. They explain how sheep are "routinely punched, kicked, dragged, and stomped on" by shearers, and she calls the crook "a symbol of domination" and "a thing of the past." She adds that it isn't something that should be in the movie, as asks Cooley if he would "please consider removing Bo Peep’s crook from the final animation?"
Bo Peep didn't appear in Toy Story 3, so this is the first time that audiences will be seeing her in some time. Due to the rest of the changes in her style, the crook is one of the only signifiers left to let people know that this is in fact Bo Peep, and not an entirely different character. That said, we can see PETA's point— would the kind and loving Bo, the love of Woody's life, be prone to using such a cruel item? It might be historical, but if Bo can change up the rest of her look, why not finish the job?
All of this might be a moot argument— the film is coming in June, and animators may not have the time to de-crook Bo Peep. Then again, in the world of computer animation, anything could be possible. Getting shepherd crooks removed from every live Christmas Eve pageant around the world would be a much harder task. Will Pixar (and Cooley) listen to PETA's pleas, or will the crook stay in play? Time and toys will tell.
By no hook and possibly no crook, Toy Story 4 will come alive on June 21.
