When we enjoy celebrities for their work on-screen and elsewhere, we might forget they have a life beyond that work.
But Stranger Things actress Millie Bobby Brown hopped on Instagram over the weekend to remind everyone she is a human being and has a personal life and encouraged everyone to be kind to one another.
It all started with a quick exchange with a fan who recognized her at the store. The fan asked 16-year-old Brown if she could take a video of just the actress, which struck her as strange, as fans typically request videos or photos of her with them.
Brown politely declined and said she did not want to be filmed. But this response was unacceptable to the fan, who decided they would record the Enola Holmes actress anyway.
This provoked Brown to post a short video to her Instagram stories, where she explained what happened before breaking down speaking about boundaries.
millie bobby brown just posted on her instastory talking about how once again people forget that celebrities ARE hu… https://t.co/RmE0veqYGa— darling thay 🌵 (@darling thay 🌵) 1606773673.0
Brown said:
"I was paying and she walked past me and began to video me again. And I said, 'I'm a human being. Like, what more can I ask from you?'"
"I asked her and I asked her, and she said, 'So I can't take a video of a human being?' And I said, 'No, not when I said no'."
She challenged those watching to show kindness and consideration to others.
Brown said:
"It's still overwhelming. I will take a picture with you, but when you push the boundary and try to fight me on it... It is my right to say no."
"I'm making this video to say, you have to show more respect for others. No matter who they are, what they do, show some respect human being to human being."
"It just makes me upset when people try to push the boundary, and I just wish people were more respectful."
Twitter users responded to the video, affirming it was Brown's and any celebrity's right to set boundaries.
@beingamaguire Standing strong with @Milliestopshate. No one absolutely NO ONE should be allowed to approach you, b… https://t.co/GFzgM0BJLs— Jim C (@Jim C) 1606832433.0
@beingamaguire Find whorver that person is and tell her to understand that people have private lives as well!. I ho… https://t.co/xw9SAk8UeC— The Enthusiast REBIRTH‼️📚🇬🇧 (@The Enthusiast REBIRTH‼️📚🇬🇧) 1606850703.0
@beingamaguire She's absolutely right! No Means No! Consent!!!! Sucks she had to go through this. Poor thing.— Nancy Da Rocha (@Nancy Da Rocha) 1606841349.0
@beingamaguire Im so sorry for her shes not an abimal a cage just to be gawped at all day and to have videos taken… https://t.co/uAwOLOU4Od— Mel (@Mel) 1606860259.0
@beingamaguire I'm so sorry that happened to you hon. At the end of the day she's still a kid. She's a teen who was… https://t.co/M5JTNNO9Ct— Chrisanta (@Chrisanta) 1606858095.0
Some came to the comments section to claim teenage stars like Millie Bobby Brown have no right to privacy because they're public figures.
@beingamaguire while it sucks that she felt that way and that it hurt her.. this is part of being a celebrity and i… https://t.co/rG5MHkZR18— DCJolt (@DCJolt) 1606847874.0
@beingamaguire While she may not LIKE it..." Generally if a private property is open to the public (like a restaura… https://t.co/pDv8Pnlyaj— Bondo Joe (@Bondo Joe) 1606850978.0
@beingamaguire Get over yourself. She’s a celebrity who doesn’t want to be filmed in public? Ooooh the sorrow.— Reeseyp (@Reeseyp) 1606864402.0
@beingamaguire This isn’t a celeb problem, anyone can be recorded for any reason in public. We can all say ‘no I do… https://t.co/VeeJTRlJrh— Mattey (@Mattey) 1606777369.0
This was not the first difficult episode for the actress recently, whether in-person or on social media.
Brown closed her Twitter account after receiving backlash for supporting the $1,980 Samsung Galaxy Fold phone. After recording her unboxing video of the new device, Brown received less-than-shiny responses from many of her fans.
Some believe this was the cause of her closing the account.
After receiving negative feedback about the phone and later regarding her interaction with the video-recording fan, Brown also closed her TikTok account. Some believe either the event with the fan or barrage of comments about her new phone, or both, were involved in her closing yet another social media account.