Why Jack Black’s ‘School of Rock’ is rocking Twitter 18 years later
Jack Black #JackBlack
Back in Black.
Nearly 18 years after its release, the “School Of Rock” proved it still strikes a chord as social-media fans lauded Jack Black and his flick for its body-positive messaging.
The praise comes as the musical comedy is slated to premiere on Netflix May 1.
“This scene is more revolutionary than I think they even knew,” wrote one fan alongside a Twitter video of a particularly impactful snippet, which currently boasts 2.5 million views.
In the heartwarming scene, Black’s whacky teacher Dewey Finn convinces stage-fright-stricken student Tamika (Maryam Hassan) that she can be a star despite her weight.
“Tamika, you’ve got something everyone wants,” the “Pick Of Destiny” star, 51, exclaims to his hesitant pupil. “You’ve got talent, girl. You have an incredible singing voice and I’m not just saying that.”
He analogizes her to similarly heavy singer Aretha Franklin as well as — somewhat questionably — to his own chunky self.
It turns out, Jack Black was a body positivity icon in “School of Rock.” ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Col
Despite having a “weight issue,” Black hilariously claims that people “worship” him when he gets onstage because he’s “sexy.” A recent Twitter poll found that the “Nacho Libre” star was hotter than Hollywood heartthrob Chris Pratt.
Unconvinced, Tamika inquires, “Why don’t you just go on a diet?”
“Because I like to eat, is that such a crime?” responds Black.
Jack Black performs onstage during a Tenacious D concert. The rocker and actor has always embraced his body. Now Twitter users are fully appreciating the message he sent to his young fans in “School of Rock.” Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Im
Needless to say, the moving moment resonated among plus-size posters.
“I see even well-meaning people be like “you never know someone’s story… maybe they eat because of depression, or poverty, or genetics” and I’m like???” wrote the vid’s poster. “It’s also totally fine if they just like to eat a lot? It’s none of your business and fat people have value regardless?”
Another fat-accepting commenter wrote, “it was so f–king hard to be a teen girl in the 2000s because it was very much about being thin, skinny, etc — there was not even the perfunctory (and still annoying) ‘sexy thicc’ talk yet. And this movie and scene were amazing.”
“School of Rock aged really, really well,” tweeted Morgan Jerkins, the New York Times best-selling author of “Caul Baby.”
“Jack Black is a testament to living and loving who you are as a person and f–k anyone who says otherwise,” seconded another.
They also praised the comedian’s viral online dance videos, the most recent of which depicted Black gyrating to Cardi B’s hit song “WAP” while sporting a Speedo.