Actors don’t only receive fan mail and adoration from the public.
Sometimes they are on the receiving end of vicious hate mail and cyber bullying – especially if they play a villain or geitjie on screen.
Ten local kykNET stars have started a campaign to share their experiences and spread awareness of abuse.
The personalities, all of whom had their share of hate, include Marijke Coetser (Getroud met Rugby), Johné van Huyssteen (Die GROOT Ontbyt), Willem Botha (Kwêla), Melanie du Bois (Arendsvlei), Roberto Kyle (Arendsvlei), Jawaahier Petersen (Suidooster), Frazer Barry (Fiësta), Marlee van der Merwe (Getroud met Rugby), Cindy Swanepoel (Binnelanders) and Weza Matomane (La’t Wiel).
“That dress is too tight, your boobs are too big and it looks as if you are pregnant.”
“I wish I can give her a b!tch slap.”
“Must the f@ggots be everywhere?”
“She is all high and mighty, but I am sure she is common in real life.”
“You don’t have any talent.”
“You are where you are because of the colour of your skin.”
These are a some of the insults these personalities have endured on social media.
Melanie plays Ronel on Arendsvlei but says her days of cyber bullying started when she was on 7de Laan.
“The comments come a long way. From 7de Laan days when I wore my hair natural, and people would say how I need to run a relaxer through my dry hair, and then came ‘Jy’s so vet’.
“Recently with Arendsvlei, they attacked my skew teeth and ‘Jesus brood hol’.”
Jawaahier Petersen plays the role of Kaashifa on Suidooster.
She says she often gets questioned about her Muslim attire when she is off-screen, compared to how she is covered when she is in the character of Kaashifa.
“I often get commentary from people who say ‘oh, but you look so much nicer with a scarf’ or ‘ oh, so you don’t wear a scarf in real life’.
“As a Muslim character, I feel that sometimes from Muslim people. I am very aware of the fact that people note that Jawaahier doesn’t wear scarves but Kaashifa does.
“People make assumptions of whether I practise Islam off-screen as well and so I’ve always tried to make it clear on social media that I’m a proud Muslim but those assumptions do get made in snide comments on social media.”
The aim of the new kykNET campaign, #YouThinkYouKnowMe, is to turn the spotlight on the way social media users treat celebrities, in order to create healthier conversations online.
Follow the celebs and their talks about cyber bullying on social media on #YouThinkYouKnowMe.