Constance Wu appeared to be unhappy about the renewal of Fresh off the Boat in May, but now the actress is clarifying her comments.
The Crazy Rich Asians star received criticism for her social media meltdown three months ago when said she was “so upset right now I’m literally crying. Ugh. F–k.”
“I had this moment of heat where I got upset because I had to give up a job I had been looking forward to and had been chasing for a while,” she explained in a new interview with the Los Angeles Times.
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“It was moving to me how many people from the show reached out to me and even on set … to say: ‘Just so you know, we love you and we know who you are, and you didn’t deserve any of that stuff.’ Because they also know that I’m an actress — I can be dramatic,” the 37-year-old actress said.
“I’m emotional. But they also know that that doesn’t represent me because they have a hundred episodes of behaviour that proves otherwise,” she said.
Wu was surprised that her tweets made headlines.
“I’m not beating myself up for it because I know me,” she said. “But I don’t think I realized that people were paying so much attention to my Twitter.”
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“I like that people are expressing their feelings about it because it improved my awareness of what it means to be a … public figure,” Wu continued. “I’ve had a back and forth about it. It’s the line between being a role model but also authenticity.”
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The project that Wu gave up was a play and not a movie, she revealed to the L.A. Times.
“There is an expectation of the way that I ought to behave and not just of perfection but of graciousness,” she said. “And I am grateful. But am I elegant? No. I think I can be verbally eloquent sometimes but, as a human, am I an elegant person? No.”
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She continued: “I think a lot of why people are lonely in this world is because they go through these Instagram feeds and everybody’s life is perfect. Nobody trips up. And sometimes I think, might it be good to see our heroes mess up a little bit and not always be perfect?”
In May, Wu tweeted: “F–king hell” after learning that Fresh off the Boat had been renewed for Season 6.
She continued: “That was not a rampage, it was just how I normally talk. I say f–k a lot. I love the word. Y’all are making a lot of assumptions about what I was saying. And no, it’s not what it’s about. No, it’s not … what this is all about. Stop assuming.”
Wu backtracked with another series of tweets, saying her earlier comments were on the heels of a rough day and “ill-timed.” She added that she was “grateful” for the renewal.
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On May 11, Wu released a more in-depth explanation for her outburst in a statement.
“But I understand how that could feel interconnected and could get muddled. So here is me unmuddling it with my truth: FOTB is a great show that I’m proud of and that I enjoy. I’ve gotten to fully explore my character and I know her like the back of my hand. So playing Jessica is fun and easy and pleasant,” she wrote.
She went on to say that she “obviously” doesn’t dislike “doing a show that is fun and easy and pleasant. But in general, I’ve always sought artistic challenge over comfort and ease.”
Wu clarified that she was upset she wouldn’t be able to work on another project “because the other project would have challenged me as an artist.
“Sometimes even my closest friends are baffled at how I could value artistic challenge/difficulties over success/happiness. But I do. I know it’s weird.”
Wu said her words were “insensitive to those who are struggling, especially insensitive considering the fact I used to be in that struggle, too. I do regret that and it wasn’t nice and I am sorry for that.”
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“People can hold conflicting feelings in their hearts — that conflict is a part of being human. So I can both love the show/cast/crew but at the same time be disappointed that I lost that other unrelated job. I appreciate those who have given me the space and faith to believe what I say about both parts of my heart,” she wrote.
“Thank you. It’s meaningful when you make the choice to believe women.”
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