Republican politicians are propelling a growing boycott of Netflix in response to the streamer debuting a French film called "Cuties," which features a group of scantily clad 11-year-old girls performing highly sexualized dance routines. The pre-teens, who join a dance troupe in hopes of escaping their conservative Senegalese upbringing, also watch and explicitly discuss pornography.
 
Soon after its release on Netflix, “Cancel Netflix” was trending on Twitter and Republican Senator Ted Cruz had called for a Department of Justice investigation into whether the film violated child pornography laws. Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., and Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz, also sent a letter on Monday to the DOJ asking for a full investigation into the movie to ensure all federal laws  regarding the exploitation of minors were followed during production. 
 
"We join our Congressional colleagues in urging the Department of Justice (DOJ) to open an investigation to ensure the film and its production uphold federal laws protecting children from exploitation . . . the film creates an environment where the sexual abuse and exploitation of children by pedophiles is normalized. While the Constitution vigorously protects the freedoms of speech and expression, content that victimizes minors is not among these protected forms of content."
 
Cuties director Maïmouna Doucouré has defended her film amid these potential investigations and has been supported by Netflix which released a statement calling the film “a social commentary against the sexualization of young children.” Despite the release of the statement, backlash over the film has led to a sharp rise in Netflix subscription cancellations. 

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