Current:Home > Back'Romeo & Juliet' director slams 'barrage of racial abuse' toward star Francesca Amewudah-Rivers-LoTradeCoin
'Romeo & Juliet' director slams 'barrage of racial abuse' toward star Francesca Amewudah-Rivers
View Date:2024-12-23 19:28:49
The theater company behind the upcoming Tom Holland and Francesca Amewudah-Rivers-led "Romeo & Juliet" play in London is speaking out after the lead actress faced "a barrage of racial abuse online."
"This must stop," The Jamie Lloyd Company wrote in a lengthy statement shared across social media on Friday. "We are working with a remarkable group of artists. We insist that they are free to create work without facing online harassment. We will continue to support and protect everyone in our company at all costs."
Amewudah-Rivers has faced an onslaught of bullying online and in her comments section, ranging from racism to colorism to featurism for her casting opposite Holland after The James Lloyd Company announced the full cast on March 28.
The Jamie Lloyd theater company continued: "Any abuse will not be tolerated and will be reported. Bullying and harassment have no place online, in our industry or in our wider communities."
"We celebrate the extraordinary talent of our incredible collaborators. The 'Romeo & Juliet' community will continue to rehearse with generosity and love, and focus on the creation of our production," the statement concluded.
USA TODAY has reached out to representatives for Amewudah-Rivers.
Halle Bailey faced similar vitriol for her role as Ariel in "The Little Mermaid," with debates about the accuracy of casting Bailey – a Black woman – in the role of Ariel, who appeared as a light-skinned, redheaded mermaid in the 1989 animated film. Rachel Zegler also had pushback for her casting as the titular character in "Snow White" as a Latina actress portraying a princess described as "white as snow."
Amewudah-Rivers has previously starred in William Shakespeare plays "Macbeth" and "Othello" as well as Sophocles tragedy "Antigone" across London theaters. She also starred in two seasons of "Bad Education" on BBC. Her role in "Romeo & Juliet" marks her debut in the West End, which is the London equivalent to New York City's Broadway.
'Romeo & Juliet' movie starsfile second lawsuit over 1968 nude scene while minors
Holland shot to fame for his role as Peter Parker in three "Spider-Man" films and Marvel spin-offs. He has also shown his range in "The Devil All the Time," "The Crowded Room" and "Uncharted." This is his first time returning to the stage since he starred in "Billy Elliot: The Musical" as a child.
The Lloyd-directed "Romeo & Juliet" has also cast Freema Agyeman, Michael Balogun, Tomiwa Edun, Mia Jerome, Daniel Quinn-Toye, Nima Taleghani, Callum Heinrich, Kody Mortimer, Joshua-Alexander Williams and Ray Sesay.
The sold-out play is set for a limited run from May 11 to Aug. 3 at the Duke of York's Theatre in London.
veryGood! (2)
Related
- Suspected shooter and four others are found dead in three Kansas homes, police say
- Stock market today: Asian shares advance ahead of U.S. inflation report
- US Sen. Dick Durbin, 79, undergoes hip replacement surgery in home state of Illinois
- Caitlin Clark's next game: Indiana Fever vs. Seattle Storm on Thursday
- Inside Dream Kardashian's Sporty 8th Birthday Party
- Princess Anne returns home after hospitalization for concussion
- NBA draft resumes for the second round on a new day at a new site
- EA Sports College Football 25 defense rankings: Check out ratings for top 25 teams
- Bull doge! Dogecoin soars as Trump announces a government efficiency group nicknamed DOGE
- Caitlin Clark's next game: Indiana Fever vs. Seattle Storm on Thursday
Ranking
- Horoscopes Today, November 10, 2024
- Ballooning U.S. budget deficit is killing the American dream
- Landon Donovan has advice for Alex Morgan after Olympic roster heartbreak: 'It will pass'
- Taco Bell joins value meal trend with launch of $7 Luxe Cravings Box. Here's what's inside.
- LSU student arrested over threats to governor who wanted a tiger at college football games
- Don't Miss Free People's 4th of July Sale with Summer-Ready Essentials Starting at $19
- Bachelor Nation's Hannah Ann Sluss Marries NFL Star Jake Funk
- California voters to weigh proposal to ban forced prison labor in state constitution
Recommendation
-
Michael Grimm, former House member convicted of tax fraud, is paralyzed in fall from horse
-
As LGBTQ+ Pride’s crescendo approaches, tensions over war in Gaza expose rifts
-
Prosecutors charge second inmate in assault that left Wisconsin youth prison counselor brain-dead
-
Here's why Amazon stock popped on Wednesday
-
Federal judge orders Oakland airport to stop using ‘San Francisco’ in name amid lawsuit
-
Here's why Amazon stock popped on Wednesday
-
Taco Bell joins value meal trend with launch of $7 Luxe Cravings Box. Here's what's inside.
-
Reality show winner gets 10 years for enticing underage girl to cross state lines for sex