Peter Andre has quietly deleted a tweet promoting his latest film role after being accused of cultural appropriation.
The Australian singer, 51, shared a trailer for upcoming crime-comedy Jafaican in which he plays a small-time crook from London called Gazza, who takes on a high-stakes con job to cover a £35,000 bill for his grandmother’s care home fees. The plan is to impersonate a notorious gangster and steal £3m, all while navigating a crash course in Jamaican culture.
The clip sparked an almighty outrage online as Andre, who is of Greek Cypriot descent, can be seen donning fake long dreadlocks and using a fake Jamaican accent.
“Peter Andre starring as the lead character of a film called JAFAICAN where he's pretending to be a Jamaican and wearing a dreadlock wig is not something I was expecting to see in the year of our Lord 2025 but here we are...” fumed one person online.
“Pardon me? A film, starring Peter Andre, as a JAMAICAN man, is due for release shortly. What is this utter f***ery and whooooo thought it was ok to sign this off in the year 2025, please?” agreed another.
“Why on earth has YouTube just recommended me a trailer for a film starring Peter Andre about a man posing as a fake Jamaican? Did I wake up in 1998?” questioned a third.
“Just saw the trailer for @MrPeterAndre new film disrespecting Rastafari - a religion in Jamaica - and mocking Jamaican culture in general, guess what he plays - a white Jamaican criminal” penned a fourth incredulously.
It didn’t take long for people to notice that the Mysterious Girl singer had deleted his tweet in light of the uproar, commenting: “So Peter Andre deleted his tweet, does that mean Jafaican is being scrapped?”
The trailer didn’t receive all negative comments, with some sharing genuine excitement about the prospect of seeing Andre on the big screen.
“Sorry a film where Peter Andre has to pose as a Jamaican gangster to pay for his Grans care home. It might just be peak art”,” wrote one person.
“Peter that looks amazing can’t wait to see this brilliant'; 'Oh yes!!!! looking forward to this @peterandre can’t wait,” another asked in response to the announcement.
“I wish I could have watched this being filmed”, commented another, adding: “Omg so gassed”.
Andre’s son Junior also showed support, remarking: “Been waiting too long for this!!! Can’t wait!!”
The Standard has contacted a representative for Peter Andre for comment.
The film, on which Andre also serves as Executive Producer, is set to premiere at the Gold Coast Film Festival on May 9.
Jafaican is directed by Fredi Nwaka and also features Wil Johnson, Oliver Samuels, Jamie Lomas, and reggae star Sizzla.
Last year saw Andre make his big screen debut in low-budget Members Club, which centered on a group of middle-aged male strippers who find themselves entangled in a dark plot to resurrect a 16th-century witch.
While the budget doesn’t seem to have improved, Jafaican marks Andre’s first lead movie role.
