TIME's Choice For 2021 Person Of The Year Is Causing A Huge Stir

What would TIME's Person of the Year be without a controversy or two? The magazine's annual choice of the person it thinks has made a big impact on the year just gone has regularly divided opinion over the years, with one of the most divisive in recent years coming when none other that former President Donald Trump got the honor back in 2016.

That decision was met with its fair share of backlash from those who didn't necessarily think the businessman deserved the honor, particularly as it came immediately after Trump's controversial campaign to get him in the White House over Hillary Clinton (who was runner-up for the title). The big reveal was done on "Today" and shared to Twitter, with some very mixed responses coming in via the social media site.

But that was far from the only controversial choice. Adolf Hitler was actually given the title of TIME's Person of the Year in 1938, while Joseph Stalin was actually bestowed the title twice, once in 1939 and again in 1942 (via Insider).

2021 brought another eyebrow raising choice from the magazine — albeit not quite on the same scale — but fans have definitely had a lot to say in the wake of the big winner when less controversial choices were made in other categories. The Entertainer of the Year went to Olivia Rodrigo and Athlete of the Year was Simone Biles (via The Hollywood Reporter), but they're not the ones that have everyone talking...

TIME confirmed on December 13 that Elon Musk is Person of the Year for 2021, unveiling Musk's cover on Twitter alongside a link to the lengthy article about the billionaire businessman.

It's safe to say responses to the choice were mixed, with some praising the decision while others were very much against Musk getting the honor. "So so happy for him. He deserves every iota of this victory. So much learned and risk taker, who not only revolutionized the way we live, but also the way we think. Kudos to him, his family and his staff members. So much to learn from him for everyone," one person tweeted.

Another Twitter user responded, "Wow. Everything that's wrong with our culture on one cover," to which another hit back in Musk's defense, "Yeah, transitioning us away from oil powered cars and renewable energy, and saving NASA money by having reusable rockets instead of dumping them in the ocean with every launch. Awful..."

"The richest person in the world. Who, rather than using their $270,000,000,000 to solve pressing real-world problems simply...doesn't. What an outstanding example to us all," someone else sarcastically wrote.

One thing's for sure though, the honor comes after a big year for Musk. September saw his company, SpaceX, make history with the very first all-civilian spaceflight, and Musk even stepped into the mainstream spotlight more to host "Saturday Night Live" in November (all while making headlines for splitting with Grimes).