The Mr South Africa pageant unveiled its Top 20 finalists on Wednesday and Twitter users think they look a little too ordinary
Shameless Twitter users could not stop laughing at the selection, with many saying their pictures look like mugshots.
It seems some people were expecting to see handsome men showing off their six-pack abs in speedos.
But all they got was this…
Mr South Africa Top 20 Finalists. 🏃♂️ pic.twitter.com/MvL43XVUzv
— Man’s NOT Barry Roux (@AdvoBarryRoux) April 25, 2019
Twitter users did not hold back their criticism
“So those are really the Mr South Africa finalists? I wonder how the ones who got eliminated look,” one tweep wrote.
Some Twitter users questioned why Miss South Africa contestants have to look like perfect Barbie dolls while the male version accepted any Tom, Dick and Harry.
Not everyone mocked the selection. Some thought the criticism was too harsh
Entertainment commentator Phil Mphela said people need to re-evaluate beauty standards.
“There’s something positive about this whole MR South Africa debacle. Perhaps we should re-examine our idea of beauty and representation. SA men do not look like Paul Phume or Maps Maponyane. So, someone who ‘stands as a model of wholesome qualities’ should mirror reality,” he tweeted.
There’s something positive about this whole MR South Africa debacle.
Perhaps we should re-examine our idea of beauty and representation.
Most SA men do not look like Paul Phume or Maps Maponyane. So, someone who ‘stands as a model of wholesome qualities’ should mirror reality
— Kgopolo (@PhilMphela) April 25, 2019
The official Mr South Africa Twitter page hit back at the haters, stressing that the men were not chosen for their looks alone, but rather for what’s on the inside
“These are the ones that don’t cheat, lie, do drugs. But actually the ones who would make good boyfriends, husbands or fathers,” the account replied to a tweet about the Top 20.
“If the Mr South Africa account says that the Mr SA contestants only have to have a “good heart” then the same should apply to Miss South Africa. It would be nice to see a Miss SA with an afro, a curvaceous Miss SA etc. We are tired of seeing the same face win.”
These are the ones that don’t cheat, lie, do drugs. But actually the ones who would make good boyfriends, husbands or fathers.
— Mr South Africa (@MrSAofficial) April 25, 2019
Twitter users argued that if Mr South Africa did indeed focus more on a “good heart”, then the female version should follow suit.
If the Mr South Africa account says that the Mr SA contestants only have to have a "good heart" then the same should apply to Miss South Africa.
It would be nice to see a Miss SA with an afro, a curvaceous Miss SA etc. We are tired of seeing the same face win.
— Mbaliyezwe Ndlela (@mbali_ndlela) April 25, 2019
Here’s what others had to say
Today, a lot of South African men have woken up and realised that they could probably win Mr South Africa if they just entered.
— binfluencer (@bobnessmonster) April 25, 2019
Mr South Africa top 20 😂 I don't know the crime but they did something. pic.twitter.com/8QmUmQkFNS
— Ovayo (@Ovayomonti) April 25, 2019
“If the Mr South Africa account says that the Mr SA contestants only have to have a “good heart” then the same should apply to Miss South Africa. It would be nice to see a Miss SA with an afro, a curvaceous Miss SA etc. We are tired of seeing the same face win.”
-A4W