Are people being a bit too sensitive against him with yesterday's accusations?
Partly, yes. The blackface charge looks weak on the evidence, but the wider criticism has a fair point. The photo was taken in warm, reddish indoor light, and under that light the olive-green face paint looked much darker than it was. Several outlets, including VT, reported that the paint was plainly green in other shots from the same day, and the thousand-yard-stare costume recreates a 1944 Tom Lea painting of a Marine. Those who defended him, and LADbible, pointed to that.
The other strand of criticism is about taste rather than race: some people thought a soldier costume was clueless with wars under way, and that is an argument about judgement, not about the paint. It's a reasonable thing to dislike even if the blackface reading is wrong. As far as the reports I found go, he hasn't responded publicly, so the photo and its caption are the only evidence either side has.
🕒 As of November 2026
