America’s favorite zaddy Pedro Pascal has officially had it with the social media trolls in his comments.
Specifically, the ones obsessing over how physically close he gets to his male and female co-stars—as if basic and consensual human warmth is now suspicious behavior.
The online hate took a predictable turn after Pascal voiced his support for trans rights earlier this year, following J.K. “the ‘K’ is for Karen” Rowling’s celebratory post about the UK Supreme Court’s April ruling that restricts the legal definition of "woman" to biological sex.
Rowling, puffing a cigar like a cartoon villain, proudly posted the news to X, earning praise from TERFs and eye-rolls from everyone else:
Pascal, ever protective of his sister Lux—a transgender actress and fierce LGBTQ+ advocate who came out in 2021—wasn’t about to stay quiet.
He posted this blistering caption in response to Rowling:
“I can’t think of anything more vile and small and pathetic than terrorizing the smallest, most vulnerable community of people who want nothing from you, except the right to exist.”
You can see the whole post here:
If you missed Rowling’s irrational descent from children's author to anti-trans crusader, don’t worry—I got you. It all started in 2019 when she publicly defended Maya Forstater, a tax researcher fired over anti-trans tweets.
Rowling doubled down with a lengthy, misinformation-packed essay in 2020, painting herself as a victim of cancel culture while dismissing the lived experiences of trans people.
Since then, she’s become less "beloved children's novelist" and more "TERF Twitter queen," using her platform to bankroll anti-trans policies and troll anyone who dares criticize her. And she has a lot of critics outside of Pascal from Harry Potter stars to Bridgerton’s Nicola Coughlan, and recently, RuPaul Drag Race reigning queen Jinx Monsoon.
With 14.3 million followers, Pascal quickly became a target for Rowling dementors, I mean defenders, in claiming that he’s trying “to bully a woman into silence” (spoiler: he didn’t) and bad-faith arguments of being “too touchy” (another spoiler: coworkers seem cool with it) by posting nefarious photos of Pedro canoodling with co-stars like Vanessa Kirby during the Fantastic Four press tour.
The implication? That his affection must be performative, manipulative, or worse, nonconsensual.
Kirby, who played Sue Storm, aka The Invisible Woman in the Fantastic Four, shut down that narrative in a Vanity Fair article:
“What happened is we were both incredibly nervous going out in front of thousands of people who love this comic. He wanted me to know that we were in this together, and I found it a lovely gesture and was very glad to squeeze his hand back.”
She also pointed out Pascal’s greatest strength: “his immense vulnerability.”
Cue a million heart eye emojis!
Meanwhile, let’s not forget that Pascal is equally affectionate with his male co-stars, from Narcos to Gladiator II, which makes the selective outrage from the pretend-to-be-well-meaning misogynists all the more transparent.
The latest wave of nonsense rolled in after Pascal posted about Sand Mama, a short film by his best friend Catherine Loerke. Trolls, presumably powered by Rowling-flavored rage, swarmed the comments with an overly-used Sergeant James Doakes GIF from Showtime's Dexter, throwing side-eyes and judgment like they caught him red-handed.
Not today, trolls.
Instead of ignoring them, Pascal pulled out his snark saber and clapped back directly. No publicist-approved statement. No angry subtweets. Just Pascal, in the comments, handing out emojis and one-liners with the elegance of a man who knows he’s too old for this BS—but still petty enough to participate.
You can view the original post and Pascal’s comments below:
@pascalispunk/Instagram
@pascalispunk/Instagram
@pascalispunk/Instagram
@pascalispunk/Instagram
@pascalispunk/Instagram
This isn’t just about Pascal being absurdly charming (though, let’s be honest—he is) or appearing in every summer blockbuster under the sun. It’s about what real celebrity allyship to the LGBTQ community should look like: loud, proud, and backed by action, not just tweets.
Pascal doesn’t shy away from the backlash; he meets it head-on, even if it means diving straight into the troll-infested depths of his own comments section.
Turning 50 last April, Pascal is also reflective and humble about the strange, sometimes uncomfortable attention that comes with fame.
As he told Vanity Fair:
“Fifty felt more vulnerable—much more vulnerable… What a silly thing for a 50-year-old man—to have all this attention! This is such shadow-voice shit, you know what I mean?”
Yes, Pedro. We do. And we love you for saying it out loud.
With more attention ahead—he’s set to reprise his role as Reed Richards in Avengers: Doomsday and return to the Star Wars universe in The Mandalorian and Grogu—you can bet the scrutiny (and the shade) will only intensify.
And naturally, Pascal’s fans responded the only way they know how: with a flood of heart emojis, memes, and gloriously petty replies aimed right back at the trolls.
You can view their reactions below:
@pleasedontfeedtheduck/Instagram
@bilalcca/Instagram
@brynna_hammel/Instagram
@im_miasia/Instagram
@tr1.sh/Instagram
@marianaa.lopeez/Instagram
@lunamariemart/Instagram
@_lisa_banana_/Instagram
@oxpolat/Instagram
@flicksbymuurph/Instagram
Want to see what started the most elegant Instashade spree in 2025?
Sand Mama is a dramatic five-minute short film by Catherine Loerke, Pascal’s BFF, about a disillusioned mother making a life-changing decision during a family beach trip. It stars Tony Award-winner Miriam Silverman and is available to stream now on YouTube.
And if you do read the video comments, you’ll find a whole lot of love—fans showing up with heart emojis, kind words, and gratitude for Pedro supporting his friends.
