Rebel Wilson recently faced backlash for her claim that she is the first-ever plus-size female lead in a romantic comedy, and after her initial response stoked the controversy, she began blocking her critics on Twitter. Now she has apologized for both her original statement — which erased the accomplishments of actresses such as Mo’Nique, Queen Latifah, and Ricki Lake — and her response to the ensuing backlash.
“In a couple of well-intentioned moments, hoping to lift my fellow plus-sized women up, I neglected to show the proper respect to those who climbed this mountain before me like Mo’Nique, Queen Latifah, Melissa McCarthy, Ricki Lake and likely many others,” Wilson said on Twitter on Monday, November 5. “With the help of some very compassionate and well-thought out responses from others on social media, I now realize what I said was not only wrong but also incredibly hurtful.”
The controversy began last week, when Wilson appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show to premiere the trailer for her upcoming movie with Liam Hemsworth, Isn’t It Romantic. “I had such a ball filming that,” she told DeGeneres. “I always add my own jokes and also I’m kind of proud to be the first-ever plus-size girl to be the star of a romantic comedy.”
Almost immediately, people on Twitter pointed out the inaccuracy in Wilson’s comments, primarily citing Latifah’s hits Beauty Shop, JustWright,and LastHoliday, as well as comedian Mo’Nique’s big-screen accomplishments,as obvious examples.
Wilson then took to Twitter to defend her comment and began blocking her critics, many of whom were women of color.
In her apology on Monday, she acknowledged that was wrong. “To be part of a problem I was hoping I was helping makes it that much more embarrassing and hard to acknowledge,” Wilson’s apology continued. “I blocked people on Twitter because I was hurting from the criticism, but those are the people I actually need to hear from more, not less. Again, I am deeply sorry.”
In a couple of well-intentioned moments, hoping to lift my fellow plus sized women up, I neglected to show the proper respect to those who climbed this mountain before me like Mo’Nique, Queen Latifah, Melissa McCarthy, Ricki Lake and likely many others.
— Rebel Wilson (@RebelWilson) November 5, 2018
With the help of some very compassionate and well-thought out responses from others on social media, I now realize what I said was not only wrong but also incredibly hurtful. To be part of a problem I was hoping I was helping makes it that much more embarrassing & hard to-
— Rebel Wilson (@RebelWilson) November 5, 2018
acknowledge. I blocked people on Twitter because I was hurting from the criticism, but those are the people I actually need to hear from more, not less. Again, I am deeply sorry.
— Rebel Wilson (@RebelWilson) November 5, 2018
What do you think of Rebel Wilson’s apology? Let us know @BritandCo.
(photo via Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
