Director Peter Berg decided to share his opinion about Caitlyn Jenner's win last night.
Jenner won the courage award at the ESPY Awards, but Berg was not too supportive.
The Lone Survivor director shared an instagram image, a meme that showed two side-by-side photos of U.S. Army veteran Gregory D. Gadson and Jenner.
"One man traded 2 legs for the freedom of the other to trade 2 balls for 2 boobs. Guess which man made the cover of Vanity Fair, was praised for his courage by President Obama and is to be honored with the ‘Arthur Ashe Courage Award’ by ESPN?” the writing in the picture read.
“Yup,” Berg wrote in the caption.
Gadson played in the Army's football team from 1985 to 1989. He was in the U.S. Army for 15 years.
Gadson lost both of his legs during a roadside bomb when he served in Operation Iraq Freedom. Now, Gadson is a motivational speaker. He is also an actor in Berg's film Battleship.
Berg is the producer for the NBC series Friday Night Lights. The show is an adaptation of the book written by H.G. Buzz Bissinger, who was actually involved in Jenner's Vanity Fair's debut cover story in July.
“It strikes me that awarding the Arthur Ashe Award to Caitlyn Jenner is just a crass exploitation play — it’s a tabloid play,” he said on The Dan Patrick Show radio program in June. “In the broad world of sports, I’m pretty sure they could’ve found someone — and this is not anything against Caitlyn Jenner — who was much closer actively involved in sports, who would’ve been deserving of what that award represents.”
In regards to Berg's instagram post, the director received backlash from Jenner's fans.
"What he is saying is discriminatory and hurtful," one commented. "I'm not going to support that. This meme is hurtful and there are my appropriate ways of conveying your opinion without trying to hurt others."
“Everyone is entitled to their opinion, absolutely, but what a nasty way to announce yours," another user commented.
Photo credit: Roger Wong/INFphoto.com
image via Instagram from Peter Berg