8 Fiercely Feminist Hollywood Actors We Ought to Know

No doubt the world needs more male champions of gender equality. For too feminism has been considered - and wrongly so - the bastion of women. But one of the most accepted definitions of feminism today is a person who rallies for equality of genders and freedom of choice. This could be men and women. It's this reason every time men in public eye, or prominence talk about their feminist side, we must celebrate. Here are 8 feminist Hollywood actors who are speaking up.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt

On Ellen DeGeneres' popular talk show, Levitt said, "I do call myself a feminist. It's worth paying attention to the roles that are dictated to us and to realise that we don't have to fit into these roles. We can be anybody we want to be." He added, "Our culture does often portray women like objects. We would watch Lakers games as a family, and my mum would always point out every time the cheerleaders came on. She'd say 'Oh so look here's the story that gets told; the men get to be heroic, skilled athletes, and the women just get to be pretty.' " He declared that his mother brought him up to be a feminist. In a video, he spoke about being a feminist and also encouraged others to talk about the idea of feminism. His project 'Hit Record' aims at championing gender equality.

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Harry Styles

Harry is a supporter of the gender equality campaign #HeForShe since 2014. The campaign encourages boys and men to fight the inequality women face. He tweeted a picture expressing the same and also urged others to do so.

I'm supporting @UN_Women and @EmWatson in #HeForShe
As should you.. pic.twitter.com/RYtM4SKkqN

— Harry Styles. (@Harry_Styles) September 25, 2014

Also Read: Noah Cyrus Apologises For Using Racist Slur To Defend Harry Styles’ Vogue Cover

Eddie Vedder

Vedder is well known for standing up in support of gender equality and bringing violence against women to an end. In 1992, talking about women's rights to monitor their reproductive health, he said, "Decide on the issues and vote — male or female —  for this is not just a women's issue. It's human rights. If it were a man's body and it was his destiny we were deciding there would be no issue. Not in today's male dominated society."

Mark Ruffalo

Here is what the actor responded to 'I am not a feminist' movement on the internet: "In short, you know not what you speak of. You reap the rewards of these women’s sacrifices every day of your life. When you grin with your cutsey sign about how you’re not a feminist, you ignorantly spit on the sacred struggle of the past 200 years. You bite the hand that has fed you freedom, safety, and a voice". Read the full story here

John Legend

At an event, Legend said, "I'm always suspicious of people who become feminists only when they have a daughter. I don’t like that you have to have a gay son to be for gay marriage. I feel like you should have enough empathy for other people that you don’t need someone to be in your family to think they’re valuable. I thought of myself as a feminist before I had a daughter and before I was married. Having a daughter might reinforce that, but it shouldn’t be the only reason I care about women’s rights. And so I think it’s important that we speak out against sexual assault and it’s important that we look at the root causes for why men feel the need to be dominant in that way and to be that toxic. We need to attack the causes for that so that women can feel more safe."

Jon Hamm

When the team of Mad Men hosted a benefit for The Rape Treatment center in Los Angeles, Hamm focused on the important role played by men and how he was raised by a single mother. This is what he said, "It is an important thing to instill in a younger generation about the impact of rape, the lasting impact of rape. Children from grade school to high school to college are incredibly susceptible and incredibly malleable, as we all know. To get them early, to teach them about the facts and figures and other realities of rape is key. It is an important issue to me as not only a man, but as an educator, as a human being and as a person on this planet."

Will Smith

The actor has a message for all boys who think its funny to tease girls: "Boys laugh at what they put girls through, but they won’t be laughing when they are wiping tears off their daughters face for the same reason."

Ian Somerhalder

Somerhalder told She Knows Magazine, "Women can be wives, mothers, comedians, bioengineers, hackers, auto mechanics… the pressure should not be on fitting stereotypes and norms, but instead the pressure should be on launching yourself toward your true passions during the short time we have on this planet. While it seems pretty meta and grand in thinking, once we step back and really acknowledge the pointlessness of role stereotypes and the necessity of true passion, the world around is liberated in every direction."

Can you think of more such feminist Hollywood male celebrities Let us know in the comments.

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