'I was using hyperbole!': Batman v Superman star Jesse Eisenberg defends comparing Comic-Con to 'genocide' after fan backlash 

  • He was at the convention on Saturday with Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill
  • The New Yorker said the screaming fans were 'terrifying' 
  • The 31-year-old actor is best known for his role in The Social Network 

By Heidi Parker For Dailymail.com

Published: 15:50 EST, 14 July 2015 | Updated: 12:45 EST, 15 July 2015

Jesse Eisenberg compared his experience of facing screaming fans at Comic-Con to genocide, saying the raucous crowd was 'terrifying.'

The 31-year-old actor was at the convention on Saturday alongside co-stars Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill to promote his upcoming film Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice. 

On Tuesday the Social Network star said he was just using 'hyperbole,' adding, 'I sometimes do employ that. I'm a normal person who has normal sensory experiences, so Comic-Con was very overwhelming for me.'

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Strange parallel: Jesse Eisenberg told the Associated Press on Monday evening at the End Of The Tour premiere in LA that Comic-Con was like 'genocide'; on Tuesday he said he was just using 'hyperbole'

Strange parallel: Jesse Eisenberg told the Associated Press on Monday evening at the End Of The Tour premiere in LA that Comic-Con was like 'genocide'; on Tuesday he said he was just using 'hyperbole'

Fans did not react well to the star's comparison, saying he was being careless.

On Saturday the star said, 'It is like being screamed at by thousands of people. I don't know what the experience is throughout history, probably some kind of genocide. I can't think of anything that's equivalent.'

The New Yorker added, 'Maybe on some cellular memory level, that's the only thing that seems like an equivalent social experience,' he said. 'Even if they're saying nice things, just being shouted at by thousands of people, it's horrifying.'

Eisenberg, who plays Lex Luthor in Batman v. Superman, talked to the Associated Press while at the LA premiere of The End Of The Tour on Monday  In the drama, Eisenberg plays journalist David Lipsky.

There he is: The New Yorker is seen far left with his Batman v Superman cast in San Diego on Saturday; here he is seen with (front row, left to right) Amy Adams, director Zack Snyder, actress Holly Hunter and (rear, left to right) actor Henry Cavill, actress Gal Gadot, actor Ben Affleck and actor Jeremy Irons

There he is: The New Yorker is seen far left with his Batman v Superman cast in San Diego on Saturday; here he is seen with (front row, left to right) Amy Adams, director Zack Snyder, actress Holly Hunter and (rear, left to right) actor Henry Cavill, actress Gal Gadot, actor Ben Affleck and actor Jeremy Irons

'Yes I have never been on the other side, on your side of journalism. I have normally been the victim so I worked with the guy who I play, I play a real person, David Lipsky,' he said. 

'I interviewed him. He taught me how to interview and what his process is like and now I understand the pariahs that you guys are.'

His co-star Segel, 35, who has attended Comic-Con in the past, chimed in: 'Whether it's positive or negative, it's still a mob.'

Not happy to be there? The Rio actor with Irons and Gadot at a panel during Comic-Con International 2015

Not happy to be there? The Rio actor with Irons and Gadot at a panel during Comic-Con International 2015

It is no small event: Thousands of people flocked to see the Batman v Superman cast speak; here Eisenberg is on the big screen as fans take photos from the crowd

It is no small event: Thousands of people flocked to see the Batman v Superman cast speak; here Eisenberg is on the big screen as fans take photos from the crowd

Jesse added, 'Yeah, it's a mob. Yeah. They were one torch away from burning me. I'm a normal person with like normal reactions to things, so of course it's going to be terrifying. 

'If you like that kind of thing and feed off of it in some way, you must have a miserable life.'

The Rio star also said, 'You know, but it's such an honor to be a part of the film. No, I mean everybody liked the movie. That was the important thing. The screaming was terrifying. ... We were on the kind of scary end of it.' 

Batman v Superman comes out March 25, 2016.

In character: The 31-year-old as Lex Luthor in Warner Bros. Pictures' Batman v Superman, which comes out March 25, 2016

In character: The 31-year-old as Lex Luthor in Warner Bros. Pictures' Batman v Superman, which comes out March 25, 2016

 

 

 

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