What to Watch on Wednesday: Matthew Morrison steals Christmas in 'Dr. Seuss' The Grinch Musical.' https://t.co/rF7oXHrn1d
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) December 9, 2020
This has been a very unsettling week. In addition to the real-life woes happening everywhere, all the light-hearted ways people have tried to brighten our holiday moods have left us confused and afraid of our televisions. We’d just come to terms that KFC wants us to get hot and bothered for Colonel Sanders (but bafflingly cast Mario Lopez to do it), when we were forced to deal with this mess: a hornified Grinch. NBC’s aired Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch Musical!, this past Wednesday night. NBC’s been doing many of these live musical events to varied success, so it only makes sense they would tackle a holiday themed one. Since it was a musical, Glee fave, Matthew Morrison, was cast in the titular role. However, he chose to make the famous green crank his own by thrusting and moaning his way through Christmas. It left viewers both horrified and with many, many strange feelings.
During Wednesday’s Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch Musical!, viewers were treated to plenty of bright colors, joyous singing and, of course, festive holiday cheer. Matthew Morrison played the legendary Grinch, and while his performance had all the comedy and crankiness that fans have come to expect from the character, it also had a certain je ne sais quoi that left some viewers uncomfortable.
While Morrison’s Grinch was unique, many viewers complained on social media that it was also too sexual. Morrison did quite a bit of heavy breathing, moaning, and fourth-wall-breaking. Plus there was the occasional hip-thrust during his performance.
Even though there was a viewer who literally created a Twitter account to comment on how uncomfortable the performance made her, most people enjoyed it. “He’s actually doing a good job,” wrote one viewer. “I can’t tell if the Grinch is trying to be creepy or sexy but it’s an enjoyable ride.”
YouTube has several pre-show behind the scene clips but no actual show clips up yet. The article has a pretty good video, you can see here. The best I can do are these clips off Twitter. I feel like I should give you some kind of warning here but, just – be careful:
INFO | Booboo new project ''Dr Seuss' The Grinch Musical'' pic.twitter.com/kgicaF6iKi
— JATP Update (@jatpupdatefr) December 6, 2020
🎥|| Trecho do Booboo com o Matthew no musical ‘Dr. Seuss: The Grinch Musical’, ontem. pic.twitter.com/h7t8dyHoal
— Booboo Stewart Brasil (@BoobooSbr) December 10, 2020
……@FBI stop the Grinch Musical please!!! pic.twitter.com/KVYHrwcl3H
— ⚒Jawn Bandicoot 4: Its About Time (@stabatme) December 10, 2020
There is a lot more groaning than we are accustomed to from The Grinch. I was going to apologize for not being able to embed any clips with his hip thrusts but maybe that’s actually my Christmas gift to you guys. In Matthew’s defense, what was he supposed to do when they give him a pompadour like that? That’s sex hair, everyone knows it. Matthew said that his performance was going to be based on Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker. Did he see that movie? Regardless of what Matthew intended, we got a grinding, growling, whipping, strutting Grinch in a show aimed at the under 12 crowd. And people had a lot of thoughts about it:
Why is Matthew Morrison saying all his lines like he’s doing a Samantha Jones impression
— Tom Zohar (@TomZohar) December 10, 2020
I've watched some Grinch Live clips to see what all the fuss is about.
Why does Matthew Morrison sound like he's on the verge of busting a nut with every line?
— thatonedrewguy (@TheDrewMusick) December 10, 2020
Matthew Morrison grinding, sexual Grinch draws backlash… For one, I can't wait for him do "Horton Hears A Ho."
— Paul Lander (@paul_lander) December 10, 2020
Matthew Morrison’s uncomfortably sexual Grinch is ruining my life guys.
— Jo(anna) Jackson (@harzlebee) December 10, 2020
Mathew Morrison is being sexual in the grinch. It’s a choice. A good one? No.
— Stacys mom (@CharlotteTesla) December 10, 2020
The Yahoo article claimed most people enjoyed Matthew’s performance. I beg to differ. Although sure, there were those who liked it, many tweets called his performance a hate crime. Others asked to be notified when it was safe to come out of hiding. And the reviews, were not good.
So what have we learned? 1) The Grinch has been reimagined enough. 2) Nothing that is being marketed to families should ever be based off of Joaquin’s Joker. 3) the Grinch should never, ever remind me that there is a pocket of the internet in which we can find Grinch p0rn.
SEE THIS IS WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT I JUST THINK MATTHEW MORRISON SHOULDNT WATCH JOKER ANYMORE https://t.co/PW04D1qfRw
— mace⁷✜❍🎄 (@maceidelic) December 10, 2020
West Coast! Let's rock this! #grinchmusical pic.twitter.com/KoctoyL0Ns
— Matthew Morrison (@Matt_Morrison) December 10, 2020
Photo credit: Twitter
I didn’t see it, but I’m into these clips. I’m into sexy Grinch, but he could not get it.
@Lemons I didn’t see sexy either. I don’t really care for his performance either, I think I’d call it overacting? This was probably the vision for the character by someone, but staaahp it. Jim Carrey will always be my favorite Grinch, no more remakes please.
I never thought that I would say this, but Matthew Morrison looks like Glenn Close in green makeup. And also that was it, sexualizing the Grinch so that I can never unsee it is THE THING that finally broke 2020 for me. 😆😆😆😆
I thought it was Glenn Close when I first saw the photo.
I thought he was Laura Dern!
I’ll admit it. I’ve watched a few seasons of Glee and it always made me uncomfortable when Mr. Shue bust out his sexy dance moves in front of high school children. Many of his performances were very sexualised and not something an adult man should perform for his students.
I never reckoned him as an actor in glee – but when he was an abuser on Grey’s he was v convincing so.much so that I can barely watch him now.
This is an odd thing for a trauma therapist to wrote but honestly he nailed it and gives me the creeps now
@Ronaldhino: the same thing happened to me with Jamie Dornan. I watched him first in The Fall with Gillian Anderson and he was just so creepy and convincing as a serial killer rapist that it is unsettling to watch him in anything else.
Yes, I was super freaked out when he was cast in the Fifty Shades movies, because he was too good at being a psychopath!
Ok whoever tagged the FBI is a genius!
My mom watched part of it, so I caught some of the material. She actually thought his performance was really good. Erotic is not exactly how I read it, per se. Dramatic is more like it, and I suspect that’s because he’s performing the way you normally would on a stage – having to use very excessive, overwrought movements for audiences to see, which may not translate as well to something filmed.
My husband turned it on. Neither of us was paying too much attention at first, but then there was this moment when we just looked at each and silently acknowledged that this was an affront to Christmas, Dr. Seuss, and our childhood memories. Then I turned the tv off because silence was better than that dumpster fire.
I admit I’m wholly biased because I don’t like the story to begin with, so I was only half listening to it while I was working on my laptop. I only watched one full scene of it, and there was no pelvic thrusting, so my impression is likely not the one to use as gold standard. 😂
Dude looks like a lady – which is making it all the more confusing.
He looks like Laura Dern in that first pic!
Omg Laura Dern. I’m crying!!!
He looks like Laura Dern in that top picture.
I do not need a sexy Grinch.
So last year I went to an art house one woman performance of Cindy Lou Hoo as an adult. The gist is she dated The Grinch and it’s a dark comedy with lots of sex jokes. So I’ve seen/heard a sexual Grinch. I could not get through this musical. The songs were my issue. They weren’t fun at all. Just depressing and too jolty.
watched a minute, then left the room because I wasn’t interested. Usually I’m down for some Mr Shue….but I guess not in the grinch form🤷♀️🤷♀️
Grown Cindy Lou is a sexy rocker. Laura Dern in a musical as sexy Grinch? Epic fail lol.
Am I the only one who thinks that in that top photo it doesn’t so much look like Matthew Morrison but Laura Dern as The Grinch? I think it’s the only thing I’ve seen from this production that makes me think that way, but now I want Laura Dern as The Grinch and that desire in unquenchable.
Well, now that I looked at the other comments, I feel less crazy.
Love Matthew Morrison. As a grown woman I can handle a sexy Grinch BUT I draw the line at a sexy Grinch who also does major fart jokes. It has to be one or the other – sexy or farts. It’s like fish and cheese. You can’t combine them.
I was thinking this would be good because he’s already sang You’re a Mean One on Glee (I have the chrismas album from Glee, don’t judge) but I only watched a few of these clips and… I am not into it. Nah. Plus I would watch it for my little kids and I dont really want them to watch this. We’ll watch some of the other versions.
matthew morrison is an enigma to me. He’s arguably pretty plain looking, but as soon as he sings and dances, he has this sexual charm/energy that is undeniable
Yes I understand exactly what you are saying!!!
Ew, traumatizing. I couldn’t even watch one of those clips all the way through with all the teeth-sucking deep breaths he’s taking.
That photo makes my skin crawl. Gross.
So, NBC is what–1 win, 5 losses on these musicals? How are they affording this? Why do they keep making the same production-sinking miscasting mistakes? The Wiz was the only one done right. Do they want an exclusive Walmart holiday DVD bargain bin for the ages or something?
I gotta say I love some Matthew Morrison. I only really know him from watching a couple seasons of Glee and from his appearance in Grey’s Anatomy (wow so different, did not like seeing him as a bad guy!). So… I’m not actually really bothered by these clips LOL. I admit they are….. a little weird, but… I like him!! Now, would I watch this whole thing in one sitting, paying full attention to it??? I don’t know…
Ew. Freaking Ew.