#Why Was Clarice Canceled? Here’s What We Know

For years, the character of Clarice Starling (namely, Jodie Foster’s portrayal of her) has been held up as a boundary-breaking and glass ceiling-shattering feminist icon. Hell, the American Film Institute considers her to be the greatest heroine in film history. Clarice Starling overcame systemic misogyny, broke into the boy’s club of the FBI, managed to obtain information from Dr. Lecter that no one else could, and single-handedly solved the case of Buffalo Bill while her superior and his all-male crew were investigating the wrong house. On paper, Clarice sounds like an inspiration to women all over the world.

Until you remember that, at the end of the day, she’s still a cop, and “Clarice” debuted at the same time Americans were chanting “defund the police” in the streets. Regardless of your personal feelings about law enforcement officers, the fact that a show was coming out glorifying the actions of a white rookie FBI agent during one of the most prominent calls for law enforcement accountability in history was a recipe for disaster.

The series was in constant conflict with its own morality as a police procedural set in the 1990s viewed through the lens of 2021 accountability. The FBI in “Clarice” is correctly presented as not without flaw, but also continuing to push the narrative that the FBI is a saving grace. The show tries its best to critique the power structures in place that keep people like Clarice Starling out, while simultaneously wanting us to cheer for her when she succeeds within the confines of said power structure, rather than dismantling it. She’s a brilliant agent, but also one that breaks the law, entering homes without warrants, and is seldom held accountable because she manages to “get the job done.”

It’s impossible to hold Clarice Starling up as someone we should aspire for young women to be more like without acknowledging that, as a federal agent, she’s actively participating in a field responsible for continued systemic oppression … and that includes the capturing of Jame Gumb, aka Buffalo Bill.