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Actress Evangeline Lilly recently came under fire for attending the anti-vax mandate protest in Washington, D.C., over the weekend. The Marvel star took to Instagram to share a series of photos from the event and said she decided to join the march to support “bodily sovereignty.”
The 42-year-old shared that she stands against the COVID-19 vaccine mandate as she believes no one “should ever be forced to inject their body with anything, against their will.” Lilly also listed several other reasons behind her opinion against vaccination:
She claimed that the vaccine mandate is not “safe” and “healthy.” The actress concluded her post by saying she understands the “world is in fear,” but she believes “answering fear with force” will not fix the problems.
The Ant-Man and the Wasp star left fans disappointed with her latest actions, with many taking to social media to call out the artist. Some enraged fans even asked Marvel to recast Lilly’s role in the franchise:
Lilly has played the role of Hope van Dyne/Wasp since the 2015 MCU film Ant-Man. She reprised her role in Ant-Man and the Wasp and Avengers Endgame and is also expected to appear in the upcoming Ant-Man sequel, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Twitter reacts to Evangeline Lilly’s anti-vax actions
Evangeline Lilly has found herself in the middle of several controversies since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic due to her debatable opinion on social distancing, quarantine, and vaccine mandates.
During the peak of the pandemic in March 2020, the actress refused to self-quarantine and said she valued "freedom over lives." At the time, she wrote:
“Some people value their lives over freedom, some people value freedom over their lives. We all make our choices.”
Lilly also faced backlash after comparing the COVID-19 virus to “respiratory flu” but later apologized for her comments:
“I thought I was infusing calm into the hysteria. I can see now that I was projecting my own fears into an already fearful and traumatic situation.”
More recently, Lilly landed in hot waters after attending Robert F. Kennedy's anti-vaccine mandate protest in Washington. Her latest move left social media users upset, with many taking to Twitter to express their disappointment at the situation.
Some fans have also drawn comparisons between Lilly and her MCU co-star Letitia Wright for their similar opinions on COVID-19 vaccines. Several fans also asked Marvel to replace the actors from their respective roles in the franchise:
As reactions continue to pour in online, it remains to be seen if Evangeline Lilly will respond to the recent backlash over her anti-vaccine moves.
Despite the ongoing controversy, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has reportedly completed production in November 2021 and is expected to hit the screens in July 2023.
