Ranbir Kapoor Recalls Finding Animal's Story 'Bold & Adult-Rated': 'Was Scared That Audience Will Not Accept Me'

Animal, starring Ranbir Kapoor, was released in 2023 and it grossed ₹917 crore worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing Indian film of 2023. The movie, however, was slammed for being misogynistic and glorifying toxic masculinity.

In a recent interview with Nikhil Kamath, Ranbir Kapoor revealed that he felt "very scared" when he first heard the story of Animal. He explained that this reaction was due to his career focus on roles that convey social messages.

Ranbir added, "I have tried to do stuff where I played the good boy or coming of age or the romantic image I had. I found this bold and adult-rated. I was scared that maybe the audience would not accept me."

The actor said that when Animal was released, though it did amazing numbers and they got a lot of love, there was a big audience that found the film misogynist and wrong in some way.

Reacting to the criticism, Ranbir said that social media played havoc. He added that Sandeep Reddy Vanga faced similar backlash when he directed Kabir Singh with Shahid Kapoor.

The Barfi actor mentioned that while the general public spoke very fondly of Animal, some people approached him and expressed their disappointment, saying that he should not have done the film.

"A lot of people from the film industry (said the same thing). I quietly apologize and say, ‘Sorry I won’t do it next time.’ I don’t really agree with them, but I am in that phase of my life I don’t argue with anyone. If you don’t like my work, I will say I am sorry I will try harder next time," he said.