When news broke that Quentin Tarantino was making a movie about the Charles Manson murders, it was a safe bet that controversy would follow. But the first sign of it is unexpected: a strange debate on whether Jennifer Lawrence is pretty enough to play Sharon Tate, one of the victims. It seems that Tate's sister, Debra Tate, who controls her likeness, doesn't think Lawrence could pull it off, an opinion that has outraged J-Law fans. In a follow-up video at TMZ, Debra Tate explains that while she likes and admires Lawrence, "there's two different kinds of pretty" and Lawrence is apparently the wrong kind in this case.
Debra Tate says her sister was a "bombshell" who was considered to be "one of the most beautiful women that ever walked the earth," and suggests that Lawrence isn't in the same league. Tarantino is reportedly also considering Margot Robbie for the role, and Debra Tate prefers her, while acknowledging "it's not my call." A post at the Revelist thinks Debra Tate should back off. Her comments are "mean and unnecessary," writes Karen Nissim. Choosing between Lawrence and Robbie would be understandably difficult, "but that doesn't mean the decision should come down to a subjective assessment of their physical beauty." At Harper's Bazaar, Amy de Klerk finds Debra Tate's criticism "puzzling and extremely misguided." (More Jennifer Lawrence stories.)