As someone who grew up watching Barney, this new documentary series about the big purple and lovable dinosaur has left me shook. Along with Sesame Street, Reading Rainbow, and Bob Ross, they were my guiding lights. And to discover that there was a darker side to all of this that has led to a Barney documentary has left me shook.
In Peacock’s I Love You, You Hate Me it’s revealed to thousands who grew up with Barney, that there was fury, backlash, and hate towards his purple dino. Sure, I heard some rumblings of it on the playground when they took his well-known song and made it so it said that he hated you, instead of loved you. But I never knew that it went this far.
Throughout the trailer, for I Love You, You Hate Me, Bob West, the voice of Barney is featured talking about how “Barney stands for inclusion and acceptance.” And it’s a stark contrast to the violent images we see in the trailer for the Barney documentary where he is hanged, set on fire, or cut in half. Combine that with apparent death threats and rumors that Barney hid drugs in his tale, and you’ve got a story to tell.
Hopefully, I Love You, You Hate Me can give me and his fans some clarity because I need to know more and if I should stay loyal to something that helped me survive.
Watch the trailer for I Love You, You Hate Me here:
I Love You, You Hate Me will premiere on Peacock on October 12, 2023.
