Filmmaker Lexi Alexander faced online backlash for posting a Luigi Mangione meme in response to the death of 32-year-old Bank of America executive Erin Piacenti.
Piacenti was fatally stabbed in the stomach in Times Square in New York on Monday after recently returning to work following the birth of her first child, a baby girl, Us previously reported. She was Bank of America’s vice president for business selection & conflicts.
Alexander, a German-Palestinian-American director whose work has received an Oscar nomination, reacted to a headline about the tragedy on X by sharing a meme featuring Mangione, who stands accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
The meme she posted on September 1 showed a photo of Batman looking up to a signal in the sky, with Mangione’s face appearing in place of a bat symbol.
X labels the post as “sensitive content.”
Following criticism, in a subsequent post, Alexander wrote “hasbara bots in full swing just like the first time we asked people to boycott [Bank of America]” and shared an article related to Bank of America’s affiliations with Israel.
Criticism in response to Alexander’s Mangione meme included an X post from University of Houston in-house attorney Mark Yzaguirre.
“A young woman was murdered while innocently walking down the street, and you are celebrating,” Yzaguirre wrote in reply to Alexander. “You are absolute human garbage, and I suspect you know that deep-down.”
Another X user wrote to Alexander and said “your anger is targeted at the wrong person.”
After news outlets reported Alexander appeared to cheer on Piacenti’s murder with her post, she publicly responded to the news coverage in a Wednesday X post.
“Can’t get this kind of press when I promote a movie, but post a Luigi meme and they’re all over you,” Alexander wrote.
Alexander is known for directing Green Street Hooligans and Punisher: War Zone, among other films.
Her Mangione post in reaction to Piacenti’s death comes a few weeks after Mangione pleaded guilty in connection with the death of Thompson, Us reported.
Pamela Cisneros is accused of stabbing Piacenti and a man in Times Square, according to police, who’ve described the attack as unprovoked. The man survived.
Cisneros was killed by police after she stabbed Piacenti in the stomach, according to authorities.
