Netflix has deleted and apologized for a tweet posted on Sunday, Jan. 10 which was deemed offensive and insensitive by many users.
The tweet featured a series of photographs of the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina cast covered in fake blood, captioned 'sunday bloody sunday', a possibly inadvertent reference to the January 1972 shootings in Derry, Northern Ireland. A Netflix spokesperson said, "Our tweet was unacceptable and has since been removed. We are very sorry for the hurt and distress it caused."
The Bloody Sunday massacre was part of The Troubles (also known internationally as the Northern Ireland Conflict), a 30-year period of conflict in Northern Ireland surrounding issues of nationalism and religion. On Bloody Sunday, British soldiers shot 26 civilians during a protest march, resulting in the deaths of 14 people. It was the worst mass shooting in Northern Irish history.
Many replies to the now-deleted tweet pointed out this reference would likely be offensive to many viewers. "Please take a minute to read your caption, then put it into google. Then apologise to your Irish fans and anyone who was affected by the atrocities," responded one user.
Another explained the significance of the words to international viewers: "That caption kinda holds the same horror as 9/11 but for Irish people. I get that it’s bloody and it’s Sunday but just no".
"Sunday Bloody Sunday" is also the title of a U2 song written in response to the events of January 1972; some Twitter users have suggested that the tweet was a misinterpretation of this song. "Dear cast of The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: That’s NOT what U2 had in mind regarding Sunday Bloody Sunday."
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Part 4 stars Kiernan Shipka as Sabrina Spellman, Ross Lynch as Harvey Kinkle, Michelle Gomez as Mary Wardwell/Madam Satan, Jaz Sinclair as Rosalind Walker, Lachlan Watson as Theo Putnam, Gavin Leatherwood as Nicholas Scratch, Tati Gabrielle as Prudence Blackwood, Chance Perdomo as Ambrose Spellman, Lucy Davis as Hilda Spellman, Richard Coyle as Faustus Blackwood and Miranda Otto as Zelda Spellman. The entire season is streaming now on Netflix.
Source: via Deadline