Sarah Silverman's old sketch in which she wears blackface recently came back to haunt her and cost her a movie role, she has now revealed.
The comedian recently appeared on The Bill Simmons Podcast and during a discussion about online criticism over old comments and jokes brought up an experience from her own life that had not been previously revealed. According to Silverman's account, she was recently set to appear in a small role in a "little" movie but was fired the night before over a photo of her wearing blackface from a 2007 episode of The Sarah Silverman Program.
"It was so disheartening," Silverman said. "It just made me real, real sad, because I've really kind of devoted myself to making it right."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
While Silverman said she is "not that person anymore" and has previously expressed regret over the sketch, she also noted the context, saying that she didn't go to a "Halloween party in the '80s in blackface" but was "doing an episode about race," also saying the show was supposed to be making fun of an "ignorant" character trapped "in a liberal bubble."
Silverman went on to decry the fact that the person who was ultimately hired to replace her on the movie is someone who has "never stuck her neck out." She did not name the actress nor the movie itself. More generally, Silverman on the podcast spoke against the idea of holding a comedian accountable for old material "if they've changed with the times," adding, "if you're putting yourself out there, it's not going to be timeless. It's just not." Listen to the full interview with Silverman on The Ringer.
-
Israeli double strike on Gaza hospital kills 20Speed Read The dead include five journalists who worked for The Associated Press, Reuters and Al Jazeera
-
Trump expands National Guard role in policingSpeed Read The president wants the Guard to take on a larger role in domestic law enforcement
-
Trump says he's firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa CookSpeed Read The move is likely part of Trump's push to get the central bank to cut interest rates
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposesspeed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wifespeed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
