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'Black Panther' Star Letitia Wright Says She's 'Moved On' After Backlash To Her Anti-Vax Video Post
Black Panther star Letitia Wright has announced she's "moved on" from the uproar over a 2020 video she posted filled with anti-vaccine rhetoric.
Wright posted the video to Twitter in December of 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and just as the roll-out for vaccines for the disease was getting under way.
The video featured online talk-show host Tom Arayomi, a self-professed "prophet" who traffics in anti-vaxx, homophobic and transphobic rhetoric, expressing skepticism about the vaccines and making claims about harmful things they could be doing to people's bodies.
It inspired an immediate backlash.
In a new interview with The Guardian to discuss the recently released Black Panther sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the British paper asked Wright about the controversy.
\u201cBlack Panther star Letitia Wright: \u2018Since Chad died I\u2019m so afraid to lose people\u2019 https://t.co/eV2EyeHS3U\u201d— The Guardian (@The Guardian) 1668868812
When Guardian journalist Simon Hattenstone touched on the vaccine flap, the Guyanese-British actor seemed reluctant to discuss it. Asked if she felt attacked at the time, Wright deflected by responding:
“I feel it’s something I experienced two years ago and I have in a healthy way moved on."
"And in a healthy way I’ve apologized and deleted my Twitter."
"I just apologized for any hurt that was caused to anybody.”
Hattenstone followed up by asking if she understood that her sharing Arayomi's video may have made her fans think she was a homophobic, transphobic antivaxxer. Wright answered:
“Those are things that I am not and I apologixed and I’ve moved on."
Putting an even finer point on the issue, Hattenstone asked Wright if she had been vaccinated, prompting her to make clear she did not wish to discuss the topic any further.
“I have apologized and I have moved on. Next question. Thanks.”
Wright's Twitter post inspired such an uproar at the time that even her fellow MCU star Don Cheadle publicly called it "hot garbage." Wright ended up deleting her Twitter account entirely after issuing an apology.
Much like that apology, Wright's Guardian comments have not been well received by some fans.
\u201cLetitia Wright has "moved on" from the anti-vax, anti-gay, anti-trans video she tweeted and would like us all to forget about it. Good for her. \nAlso... No. \nhttps://t.co/uhqQeiNf9x\u201d— Woody Schultz #BlackLivesMatter (@Woody Schultz #BlackLivesMatter) 1668973247
\u201cI think she just apologized for the sake of apologizing\u201d— tunomuinyo (@tunomuinyo) 1669058271
\u201chttps://t.co/q1sNAYGrxb\n\nOh goodie. I am glad she has \u201cmoved on\u201d from spreading misinformation that endangered peoples lives. Very brave of her.\u201d— Academy Rewind (@Academy Rewind) 1669012171
\u201cthe letitia wright propaganda not working on me i ain't forget she anti vaxx\u201d— politics over punani, BSW (@politics over punani, BSW) 1668895063
But many others have defended Wright, particularly after a Hollywood Reporter piece named her alongside actors accused of physical abuse and sexual misconduct as one of several stars with "personal baggage" because of her anti-vaxx flap in 2020.
\u201cLeave Letitia Wright alone @THR! She apologized for her past comments, the world moved on. Truly vile behavior from this THR writer.\u201d— Chris Del Rey (@Chris Del Rey) 1669129159
\u201c@MCU_Direct She also said she wasn\u2019t initially aware of the transphobia in the video and deleted it straight away and apologised after. Glad this can be cleared up now finally!\u201d— MCU - The Direct (@MCU - The Direct) 1668981561
\u201c@MCU_Direct And that\u2019s all she can do. We need to stop penalising people for everything. She made a mistake and she\u2019s said she\u2019s sorry people just need to give it a rest\u201d— MCU - The Direct (@MCU - The Direct) 1668981561
\u201cand she spilled\u201d— \u200f\u064b (@\u200f\u064b) 1669078939
\u201cLetitia Wright doesn\u2019t deserve such malice from the media. \n\nYes, I was very critical of Letitia for her views re: Covid vaccine. It appears she\u2019s made amends for it & turned in a phenomenal performance in #WakandaForever \n\nShame on THR for vilifying her like this.\u201d— Jeff Rothman \ud83c\udf3b\ud83c\udfd2\u26be\ufe0f (@Jeff Rothman \ud83c\udf3b\ud83c\udfd2\u26be\ufe0f) 1669086414
Wright's performance in Wakanda Forever is generating Oscar buzz for the star, as is the film itself, which is expected to be a Best Picture nominee.