In a recent interview with the French talk show, “Clique,” The Batman star Robert Pattinson reflected on one of the most difficult decisions he’s ever had to make in his life. It’s a choice that many of us were faced with during the late 90s, and over time we’ve come to realize that, wow, what if we got to be happy and poly with the cast of Final Fantasy 7 instead of having to choose one girl or the other?
Or maybe you had that epiphany back then. I didn’t at the time, but I certainly do now.
Wait, this is about Final Fantasy 7?!
I’m not sure how the topic came up as the clip only shows the Final Fantasy 7 part of the interview, but Pattinson talks about how the game, and the tragic fate of Aerith, is, quote, “how every guy figures out what love is.” Or Aeris, as Pattinson briefly mentions the translation issues of her name in the original version of the game.
Actual depiction of Zoë Kravitz during the explanation:
“The one that’s gonna heal everything or the one in the short skirt? These are the options?” Kravitz asked. “Oh, my god, this is the problem with the world!”
Look I know if you aren’t familiar with Final Fantasy 7, hearing your co-star talk about the dilemma of choosing “the kind one” or “the sexy one” in regards to polygonal love interests sounds very “WTF,” but Pattinson gave a really short version of how you come to care about these characters and are suddenly very stressed about who to invite to the carnival at night.
It was 1997, both girls were cool, and, for some reason, you had to make a choice—which feels especially awful when you get to the part where one of them dies. That was a lot of stress when I was 14, so trust me when I say that there’s an entire generation of young gamers who were conflicted about who to hang out with at Gold Saucer.
Related: Vincent Valentine Voice Actor Says Character Recast for FFVII Rebirth on Siliconera
Not the first time Pattinson has expressed his love for the game
Back in 2020, during the run of Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, Pattinson expressed his love for Final Fantasy 7. In an interview with GameSpot, he talked about how the game impacted him and how it introduced him to his first love. “Mine, I think it’s a lot of people’s favorite game—Final Fantasy VII. Probably one of the only times I’ve cried in my life was when Aerith dies. My first love.”
Interestingly, in the interview with GameSpot, he gave a definitive answer with Aerith being his first love. However, times have changed, and in this new interview, he expresses his frustration with having to decide between her and Tifa.
I relate to Pattinson in this instance. Back in the day, I made Tifa my number one choice because I had a soft spot for childhood friends who could punch and kick things really hard. Even so, I still liked Aerith, and over the years I’ve started to realize that the whole thing could’ve been easily solved if I could just have an OT3 and call it a day. Then at some point, I realized that Cloud and Sephiroth’s relationship really felt like an ex-boyfriend in need of a restraining order, and while Zack does get together with Aerith, there was no reason why he couldn’t be part of Cloud’s growing tragic ship roster.
So … why couldn’t we just have our Materia and equip it, too? Like, don’t you dare force me to choose from a cast that looks this good who I build a solid bond with, ESPECIALLY since Final Fantasy 7 Remake actually goes in a different direction where we have no idea if things are going to play out in the same, heartbreaking way.
But yes, boiling it down to “healer” and “sexy thief” doesn’t paint the best picture of how this was a thing back in the 90s. Someone, please get Zoë Kravitz a copy of Final Fantasy 7 Remake so she can be just as “why OTP when you can OTAvalanche” as the rest of us—and not just the mains, Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie can get some love, too.
(Image: Warner Bros./Square Enix)
—The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.—
