Actress and writer Issa Rae keeps seeing her star rise, and now she’s speaking out against inequality in Hollywood. Specifically, the treatment that The Flash star Ezra Miller is getting despite Miller’s constant bad press and uncouth behavior.
In a deep dive piece in Elle, the Insecure creator shared her thoughts on the matter, and spoiler alert, they’re not positive toward the status quo.
She starts by being fairly level-headed about the whole thing, asking for a measured response to improper allegations.
“It starts with a backbone. While I don’t support people jumping to immediate conclusions and I think it’s entirely fair for investigations to happen, I think it’s extremely important to, like the mantra says, ‘Listen to women.’”
Miller has been accused of some serious stuff, including grooming, violence, disorderly conduct, harassment, and burglary, just to name a few. Rae says the fact that Miller is still employed is a sign of the state of Hollywood.
“I’m gonna be real, the stuff that’s happening with Ezra Miller is, to me, a microcosm of Hollywood. There’s this person who’s a repeat offender, who’s been behaving atrociously, and as opposed to shutting them down and shutting the production down, there’s an effort to save the movie and them. That is a clear example of the lengths that Hollywood will go to to save itself and to protect offenders.”
If Hollywood stops doing that, things might actually change, she said.
“So, don’t do that, and women may be able to thrive. They won’t have to live in fear of keeping silent because it’ll ruin their careers. It’s just a constant pattern of abuse that’ll only persist if Hollywood continues to insist on being this way.”
Time will tell if Rae’s comments move the needle a bit.