Brie Larson apologises if photo with dolphin 'appeared to endorse animal cruelty' after angry reaction

'I don't believe any living thing deserves mistreatment'

(Getty Images)

Brie Larson has issued an apology to her followers after a picture of her petting a dolphin as a teenager sparked a backlash.

The Room actress, 26, shared a picture of herself stroking a dolphin at a zoo in 2004 with the caption #noregrets. But some condemned Larson for sharing a photo of herself with an animal in captivity. “As a celebrity you should use your fandom as a way to help fix the world and this is really wrong,” wrote one follower. “Very disappointing.”

“You took a 'moment' of dolphins swimming in the ocean but think they are okay in a tank!?” another added.

The caption was later updated with an edit to read: “I do not support animal cruelty.” But when this did little to quell concerns, she shared a sombre selfie and claimed the picture “encapsulated a silly moment in my weird life”.

“I forgot that through social media and random interviews you do not know all the facets of me and what my concerns are.

“We should be concerned about the well-being of all animals. Yes, dolphins. Along with every other creature. There are problems with animals in captivity. There are problems with animals living in the wild. It has always been a priority of mine to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves.

“I apologise if the photo appeared to endorse animal cruelty. I don't believe any living thing deserves mistreatment. In the comments section feel free to discuss your thoughts, concerns, articles ANYTHING that can turn this into a moment of education for myself all who are interested. We gotta remember that we will make mistakes but we can learn from them, together.”