‘Doctor Strange’ Star Tilda Swinton Says She’s Done With COVID-19 Masking Mandates On Film Sets
Slade Hale
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Tilda Swinton, perhaps best known for her starring roles in such films as The Beach, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe, and 2016’s Doctor Strange, recently went on the attack against the continued enforcement of COVID-19 masking mandates on film sets.
Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One in ‘Doctor Strange’ (2018), Disney+
Swinton divulged her stance on such mandates during a recent appearance at a panel held as part of the 2023 South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas.
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“I’m actually just about to start shooting a picture in Ireland,” the actress told the panel’s host, Sundance Film Festival director Eugene Hernandez. “And I was told, full disclosure, and I’m sure this is being recorded – people in Ireland might hear it – to wear a mask at all times. And I’m not wearing a mask because I’m super healthy, and I’ve had COVID so many times, and I’m so full of antibodies, and I have faith.”
Turning to the crowd, she continued, “Look at you. I bet you none of you are wearing masks, as well. I mean, who knew that was gonna be possible? I mean, in Texas, did people wear masks? I have to ask.”
Tilda Swinton interviewed by ABC about ‘Doctor Strange’ (2016), via YouTube
Swinton went on to express her love for filmmaking, and how it related to the pandemic, asserting, “A couple of years ago, we couldn’t imagine sitting in a room like this, could we?”
“And we did wonder,” she recalled. “I did. I wondered how long it would be before the time we would be able to, and I did…I did have a concern that those who thought that sitting in a big place to look at a big screen was a bit obsolete would kind of gain traction, and that that would just tip it over the edge, and people would just forget the power of the magic carpet.”
Anthony Fauci tells people to wear two masks instead of one, courtesy of CNBC YouTube
It’s a surprising stance from the actress, as in an era when Hollywood is still attempting to cling to COVID-19 theatrics like a security blanket, she’s one of the few to come out swinging against certain the mask-forever narrative that certain Left-wing jurisdictions and hijacked institutions desperately continue to cling to.
During the height of the pandemic, masking mandates were being enforced not out of necessity, but because they allowed certain individuals and groups – often backed by the fasicistic governments of such countries as Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and even the U.K. – to amass obscene levels of power.
Tilda Swinton as Sal in ‘The Beach’ (2000), Miramax
For example, it was revealed in 2021 that the American Federation of Teachers, one of the Democratic Party’s largest donors, had gained such bureacratic influence as to directly shape the mask-related policies of the Center for Disease Control.
Others, like the highly controversial and scrutinized Anthony Fauci, were audacious enough to suggest wearing multiple masks, one on top of the other, even though all data related to the topic showed that masks had little-to-no efficacy in stopping the transmission of COVID.
Such examples of corruption led many to unsurprisingly speculate that the pandemic was one gigantic testing platform for large-scale government control over the masses, with masks being one of the first tests performed in the wild.
The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) confronts Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen) in the Mirror Dimension in Doctor Strange (2016), Marvel Entertainment
And in regards to her fear of a dying theater industry, unfortunately for Swinton, that fear has largely become a reality.
Thanks to Hollywood’s continual proliferation of streaming services, insanely high ticket and food prices, and not to mention the massive drop in general film quality in recent years, many moviegoers have already (and quite easily) weened themselves off of the theater-going experience altogether.
The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) realizes her role in preserving the future in Avengers: Endgame (2019), Marvel Entertainment
And given the fact that only certain films such as Top Gun: Maverick have managed to excite audiences enough to return to the theaters, it’s clear that, for many, the decision to forego the theater altogether was an easy one.
Simply put, the movie business has been a flop, even in a post-COVID climate.
Maverick (Tom Cruise) is back in the pilot’s seat in ‘Top Gun: Maverick” (2022), Paramount Pictures
In an age of mass vaccinations, masking requirements seem even more ridiculous than before. Add in the reluctant from the so-called “experts” to admit that they got the masking issue completely wrong, and it’s high time they were cast aside altogether.
Even countries like Singapore, who were extremely strict when it came to mandatory masking, have since abandoned the practice altogether, now only requiring them when inside clinics or hospitals.
The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) separates Doctor Strange’s (Benedict Cumberbatch) physical and astral forms in Doctor Strange (2016), Marvel Entertainment
And yet, even as people grow weary of the crumbling COVID narratives and attempt to get back to pre-pandemic normalcy, there are still many on the Left who simply will not let go of their delusions.
Nevertheless, Swinton’s open bucking of masking mandates is a sign that even some Leftist voices are starting to turn on COVID theater.
The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) prepares to take on Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen) in Doctor Strange (2016), Marvel Entertainment
Despite the actress being an LGBTQ advocate and a supporter of various Left-wing causes and talking points, she is surprisingly apolitical in her public affairs. Even her Twitter feed is little more than a series of zany and mind-bogglingly weird tweets that stress dry humor over serious political statements.
When individuals like Swinton begin speaking up, it should become clear that the battle has already been lost.
A brief collage of Tilda Swinton’s offbeat Twitter feed
Is Tilda Swinton the first of many to come out against masking mandates on film sets, or will she feel the wrath of Left-wing cancel culture?
If this sort of rhetoric came from a straight white male, there’d be headline after headline about ‘toxic white male supremacy’ followed by said male being accused of wanting to kill Grandma.
The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) offers the Time Stone to the Hulk ()Mark Ruffalo) in Avengers: endgame (2019), Marvel Entertainment
But given her aforementioned status as a supporter of LGBTQ causes, odds are that Swinton will be given a free pass by said hypocrites – all because she’s simply too valuable to their cause.
NEXT: MSNBC Editor Zeeshan Aleem Attacks ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’ Saying “I Hope It Tanks At The Oscars”