The Flash’ Hartley Sawyer, who plays The Elongated Man on The Flash, has been fired for social media abuse in the past.
Way before Sawyer was cast in The Flash he tweeted several misogynistic, racial and homophobic posts messages on Twitter. And when those resurfaced The Flash showrunner Eric Wallace was mad as hell.
Hartley Sawyer fired over abuse posts
“In regards to Mr. Sawyer’s posts on social media, we do not tolerate derogatory remarks that target any race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation,” reads a statement from The CW, producers Warner Bros. TV and Berlanti Productions, and Flash showrunner Eric Wallace, cited by The Hollywood Reporter. “Such remarks are antithetical to our values and policies, which strive and evolve to promote a safe, inclusive and productive environment for our workforce.”
Eric Wallace is mad as hell
The Flash’ showrunner Eric Wallace then took to Twitter and explained Hartley Sawyer’s resurfaced posts broke his heart but also made him made as hell because they are indicative of: “the larger problem in our country. Because at present, our country still accepts and protects the continual harassment — unconscious or otherwise — terrorizing and brutalizing of Black and Brown people, which is far too often fatal. That’s why our country is standing up once again and shouting, ‘ENOUGH!’ and taking to the streets to bring about active change.”
Hartley Sawyer responds on Instagram
Hartley Sawyer responded on his firing with a post on his Instagram. He had the following to say about what he did in the past:
My words, irrelevant of being meant with an intent of humor, were hurtful, and unacceptable. I am ashamed I was capable of these really horrible attempts to get attention at that time. I regret them deeply.
This was not acceptable behavior. These were words I threw out at the time with no thought or recognition of the harm my words could do, and now have done today.
I am incredibly sorry, ashamed and disappointed in myself for my ignorance back then. I want to be very clear: this is not reflective of what I think or who I am now.
Years ago, thanks to friends and experiences who helped me to open my eyes, I began my journey into becoming a more responsible adult – in terms of what I say, what I do, and beyond. I’ve largely kept that journey private, and this is another way that I have let so many down. I still have more work to do.
But how I define myself now does not take away the impact of my words, or my responsibility for them. I am very sorry.
His tweets includes the following: “all women should be in sex farms” (from May 2011), “If I had a wife I would beat the hell out of her tonight lol” (February 2012), “The only thing stopping me from doing mildly racist tweets is the knowledge that Al Sharpton would never stop complaining about me” (June 2012), “Out at dinner and just exposed myself as a racist, AGAIN” (November 2014), “Jingle bells, batman smells, women shouldn’t vote” (November 2014), and homophobic slurs.
Hartley Sawyer fired and that’s what he deserves in my opinion. While I like the way he portrayed the Elongated Man, I can’t come to terms as to what he said on Social Media. It is a taint and it will haunt him for a long time in his career. I do hope that they won’t recast the role but rather pick up a new comic relief on the show.
While Hartley gets fired, Netflix confirmed that Lucifer returns for a sixth season. Don’t miss this story as well!
