In an LA Times interview, Crazy Rich Asians star Constance Wu discussed her Fresh Off The Boat Twitter controversy.
Back in May, Wu came under fire after angrily tweeting about how Fresh Off The Boat was renewed for another season.
“So upset right now that I’m literally crying. Ugh. Fuck,” she wrote in one message. “Fucking hell.”
Fans were understandably outraged, with many questioning her gratitude. “Just think about all the actors and crews today that shows didn’t get renewed and are devastated. So maybe you shouldn’t be so upset that yours got renewed,” wrote one fan.
Wu initially defended her comments, saying her tweets were not an outburst. “It was just how I normally talk. I say fuck a lot,” she said.
She then eventually apologized, saying she was upset that she had to forgo another project she was looking forward to.
“My words and ill-timing were insensitive to those who are struggling, especially insensitive considering the fact that I used to be in that struggle too. I do regret that and it wasn’t nice and I am sorry for that,” she wrote in a lengthy Instagram post.
Now, Wu has spoken up about the incident, stating that she was being dramatic.
“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 said.
“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.”
“I mean, that’s our toolkit, right? I’m dramatic. I’m emotional. But they also know that that doesn’t represent me because they have a hundred episodes of behavior that proves otherwise.”
Wu went on to say that she doesn’t want to be confined to her Fresh Off The Boat character.
“I don’t want to be in one box. There’s a part of me that’s like Jessica Huang, that’s why I can play her. There’s a part of me that’s like Destiny (from her upcoming film Hustlers), that’s why I can play her.”
Nonetheless, Wu said she learned from her lesson. “I’m not beating myself up for it, because I know me,” said Wu. “But I don’t think I realized that people were paying so much attention to my Twitter.”
She added that she is adjusting to becoming a public figure.
“I like that people are expressing their feelings about it, because it improved my awareness of what it means to be a … public figure. I’ve had a back-and-forth about it. It’s the line between being a role model but also authenticity.”
“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,” she said. “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?”
“There is an expectation of the way that I ought to behave, and not just of perfection but of graciousness. And I am grateful. But am I elegant?” she said with a laugh. “No. I think I can be verbally eloquent sometimes, but as a human, am I an elegant person? No.”
In related news, Jennifer Lopez recently revealed that she punched Wu in the face whilst filming Hustlers.
Fresh Off The Boat is also reportedly getting a spinoff that won’t include Wu.
