Lea Michele Apologizes for Her Behavior on ‘Glee’ Set: ‘I Will Be Better’
Days after Glee‘s Samantha Ware and other costars accused Lea Michele of rude and racially insensitive behavior on set, the actress is speaking out via social media.
The situation first arose following Michele’s May 31 tweet which stated, “George Floyd did not deserve this. This was not an isolated incident and it must end. #BlackLivesMatter.” Referencing the ongoing riots sparked by Floyd’s death, the remark which was intended to relay support was met with backlash by Ware and others from Glee‘s ensemble.
“Remember when you made my first television gig a living hell?!?!” Ware wrote in all caps. “Cause I’ll never forget. I believe you told everyone that if you had the opportunity you would ‘s**t in my wig!’ amongst other traumatic microagressions that made me question a career in Hollywood.”
Soon after, Ware’s fellow Glee alum Dabier (Black Lightning) wrote, “Girl you wouldn’t let me sit at the table with the other cast members cause ‘I didn’t belong there’ f**k you Lea.” GIFs responding to Ware’s claims were posted by Amber Riley and Alex Newell (Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist).
Lea Michele as Rachel Berry in Glee (Credit: Eddy Chen/TM and Copyright ©20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved./courtesy Everett Collection)
In response, Michele posted a lengthy statement to Instagram saying, “When I tweeted the other day, it was meant to be a show of support for our friends and neighbors and communities of color during this really difficult time, but the responses I received to what I posted have made me also focus specifically on how my own behavior towards fellow cast members was perceived by them.
“While I don’t remember ever making this specific statement,” she adds, referencing Ware’s claims, “and I have never judged others by their background or color of their skin, that’s not really the point, what matters is that I clearly acted in ways which hurt other people.”
Michele portrayed Rachel Berry throughout the Ryan Murphy-created musical dramedy’s 2009-2015 run. “I listened to these criticisms and I am learning and while I am very sorry, I will be better in the future from this experience,” Michele concluded.
See the full statement below:
View this post on Instagram
Watchlist Easy access to only the shows you care about — all in one simple place
Alerts Only important notifications — when a show is returning, when it becomes available to stream, and more.
Special Offers Exclusive products we release related to your favorite shows and streaming services