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Armie Hammer Under Fire for Critique of Stan Lee Selfie Tributes

Hammer apparently took issue with a number of celebrities posting selfies with Lee to mark his passing

Celebrities flocked to social media yesterday following the death of comic legend, writer and former Editor-in-Chief at Marvel, Stan Lee. But one high profile actor tweeted biting opposition to a specific type of commemoration: "putting up a picture of yourself," which Armie Hammer criticized on Twitter.

Lee, who died at 95 at Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, created or co-created famous comic book characters like Spider-Man, the Hulk, Black Panther and the X-Men. Lee received the National Medal of Arts in 2008.

"If Stan impacted your life (ie. all of our lives) with his work, post his work that touched you most," the "Call Me By Your Name" actor responded to a Twitter user commenting "Maybe they're just remembering how it felt to meet him with those photos." "Posting a selfie makes his death about you and how cool you felt taking a picture with him," Hammer wrote.

Hammer apparently took issue with a number of celebrities posting selfies with Lee to mark his passing. Robert Downey Jr. tweeted a photograph of himself and Lee in front of a green screen, an emoji heart edited over it. Many of his fellow Marvel cast members posted similar photographs with the comic legend, included Chris Pratt, Hugh Jackman, Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Zoe Saldana, and Karen Gillan.

Hammer faced scrutiny on social media for his response. One Twitter user, "melanie," called the tweet "contradicting": "you're doing even worse than what you're stating by making a legend and his passing about something so materialistic and unnecessary? there's nothing wrong with people remembering him in their own way." Some even used references to Marvel to critique the actor’s tweets.

Hammer was not the only celebrity facing controversy in the aftermath of Lee's death. Actress Gwyneth Paltrow, Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Pepper Potts, posted a now deleted Instagram photograph of her and co-star Chris Pratt at the premier of "Avengers: Infinity War," where she advertised a $615 dress being sold on Goop, her brand. Paltrow edited the comment after learning of Lee’s passing, who she said "will be so missed.” 

Hammer, who received critical acclaim for his role opposite Timothée Chamelet in last years' "Call Me By Your Name,: which earned him a Golden Globe nomination for best supporting actor, was recently featured in Boots Riley's "Sorry to Bother You."

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