Latest news with #F-slur
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
After Saying He'd Tie JoJo Siwa Up To Turn Her Straight And Making A Young Housemate Cry With Inappropriate Sexual Comments, Mickey Rourke Is Pursuing Legal Action Against 'Celebrity Big Brother'
In uncomfortable scenes, Rourke asked 21-year-old Siwa if she liked girls or boys, she replied: 'Me? Girls. My partner is nonbinary.' In response, Rourke said: 'If I stay longer than four days, you won't be gay anymore.' Siwa remained calm as she retorted: 'I can guarantee I'll still be gay, and I'll still be in a very happy relationship,' but Rourke horrified viewers when he hit back with: 'I'll tie you up.' Soon after, Rourke told former 'Love Island' star Chris Hughes: 'I'm going to vote the lesbian out real quick,' and when he was called out on his comments, Rourke used the F-slur while motioning toward Siwa and saying: 'I'm not talking about you.' Siwa was reduced to tears by the exchange and comforted by her housemates, with Big Brother issuing Rourke a warning for his comments. Rourke was called to speak with Big Brother in the Diary Room, where he insisted: 'Nothing really happened, we were just bantering back and forth. Sometimes someone can look at you a certain way in your eye, and they're saying something without saying it.' He apologized to Hughes and the two hugged it out, but the women in the house were left unnerved by both incidents. 'I don't want to cry, it's fine, I just don't like it. I don't like all the sexual innuendos about: 'You're going to come in me' and that,' she tearfully continued. 'That's it, that is not OK, and it's driving me mad,' actor Patsy Palmer agreed. 'And it's not funny. In what world is any of that stuff funny?' Speaking to Big Brother in the Diary Room, emotional Wise added: 'It just makes me feel on edge. I don't like the jokes, like, the sexual jokes that have been made towards me. I'm a young girl, I'm not a piece of meat, do you know what I mean? He's making people feel really uneasy.' 'It's fucked up, this shit,' Preston concluded. 'It's causing a weird place, I don't like it.' 'This language has caused offense to your fellow housemates and could cause offense to the viewing public,' Big Brother added, to which Rourke acknowledged: 'I did wrong, I apologize, I'm sorry, I can't take it back. I stepped over the line, and I take responsibility for doing the wrong thing because I lost my temper. And I've been trying to work on it my whole life, and I wish I would have had better self-control.' 'I'm very sorry, I'm ashamed of myself for losing it for a few seconds there,' he added of the incident with Hughes. 'Nobody got touched or hurt, maybe some feelings got hurt, or maybe others have feelings about someone getting upset, but I'm sorry about that.' And when Big Brother said they had 'no option' but to ask Rourke to leave the house, Rourke understood. In fact, he admitted that he'd wanted to go the previous day when he was up for eviction, but he did not get voted out. 'I blame myself, I know it was my bad,' he said. 'I've got a short fuse and I know I upset a lot of people out there. And I'm sorry for that, I'm actually ashamed of myself for getting that hot. I went over the line, I did wrong. I guess, like you say, I'm a work in progress. I just want to pack my bags and leave. I wanted to leave yesterday, actually, but wasn't chosen. I'd like to leave now, actually.' 'There's no question that when 'Big Brother' booked Mickey Rourke, they were fully aware of both his public persona and how it aligned with his Hollywood rebel image,' Hines said in the statement, adding that ITV knew when booking Rourke that he would be 'explosive, controversial and attention-grabbing — and that's exactly what they got, and more.' 'In our discussions, 'Big Brother' was made fully aware of Mickey Rourke's background and lifestyle,' the statement went on. 'Yet rather than handle it professionally, they took it too far — publicly embarrassing him and using his removal as a marketing tool. That's not just unprofessional; it's deeply disrespectful and damaging.' 'To add insult to injury, 'Big Brother' is now refusing to pay Mickey his full agreed-upon fee. His legal team is currently pursuing the matter,' Hines concluded, claiming that 'Big Brother's' use of Rourke's 'name and image' is 'an insult to a true cinematic icon' after a 'long and accomplished career.'
Buzz Feed
17-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Mickey Rourke Is Pursuing Legal Action Against 'Celebrity Big Brother' After He Was Removed From The House, Here's A Full Breakdown Of His Controversial Behavior Ahead Of His Exit
On Saturday, the news broke that Mickey Rourke had been removed from the UK's Celebrity Big Brother house after repeated instances of 'inappropriate language' and 'unacceptable behavior.' His removal came just days after the ITV reality show had launched, and the 72-year-old Hollywood actor had already sparked outrage for a series of anti-gay comments that he made about JoJo Siwa earlier in the week. ITV In uncomfortable scenes, Mickey asked 21-year-old JoJo if she liked girls or boys, she replied: 'Me? Girls. My partner is nonbinary.' In response, Mickey said: "If I stay longer than four days, you won't be gay anymore.' JoJo remained calm as she retorted: 'I can guarantee I'll still be gay, and I'll still be in a very happy relationship,' but Mickey horrified viewers when he hit back with: 'I'll tie you up.' Soon after, Mickey told former Love Island star Chris Hughes: "I'm going to vote the lesbian out real quick,' and when he was called out on his comments, Mickey used the F-slur while motioning towards JoJo and saying: 'I'm not talking about you.' JoJo was reduced to tears by the exchange and comforted by her housemates, with Big Brother issuing Mickey a warning for his comments. His exit aired in Sunday night's episode of the show, and his behavior and language leading up to his departure were also pretty shocking, with multiple female housemates expressing how uncomfortable they felt around him. ITV At one point in the day, 24-year-old reality star Ella Rae Wise said: 'Mickey, you've got to come with me,' and he replied: 'Come in you?' The other housemates were noticeably horrified, with drag performer Danny Beard snapping: 'Mickey, you can't make them jokes!' ITV Later, as part of a pirate-themed task, Mickey squared up to Chris after Chris jokingly stepped out of line and stared at him when they playfully said there was 'a rat among' them. Approaching Chris, Mickey asked: 'You looking at me? Don't eyeball me.' ITV As the others tried to defuse the situation by telling Mickey that it was just a joke, Mickey continued: 'Don't fucking eyeball me, what are you going to do? You cunt. Your ass will be right there in a second.' ITV Mickey was called to speak with Big Brother in the Diary Room, where he insisted: 'Nothing really happened, we were just bantering back and forth. Sometimes someone can look at you a certain way in your eye, and they're saying something without saying it.' He apologized to Chris and the two hugged it out, but the women in the house were left unnerved by both incidents. Ella ended up breaking down in tears as she reflected on Mickey's earlier comment to her, saying: 'You can be just someone, but you also have to be mindful of what it can trigger in other people because it's made me feel very uneasy.' ITV 'I don't want to cry, it's fine, I just don't like it. I don't like all the sexual innuendos about: 'You're going to come in me' and that,' she tearfully continued. 'That's it, that is not OK, and it's driving me mad,' actor Patsy Palmer agreed. 'And it's not funny. In what world is any of that stuff funny?' Speaking to Big Brother in the Diary Room, emotional Ella added: 'It just makes me feel on edge. I don't like the jokes, like, the sexual jokes that have been made towards me. I'm a young girl, I'm not a piece of meat, do you know what I mean? He's making people feel really uneasy.' Actor Donna Preston and TV presenter Angelica Bell felt the same way, with Donna saying: 'It's made me quite sad, that. I don't have any respect [for Mickey] at all, at all now,' and Angelica fought back tears as she said: 'It does affect us all.' ITV 'It's fucked up, this shit,' Donna concluded. 'It's causing a weird place, I don't like it.' Mickey was called to the Diary Room that evening, and when he was told about the 'inappropriate sexual language' he'd used toward Ella, he had no idea what they were talking about, saying: 'I'm not aware of that, but OK.' ITV 'This language has caused offense to your fellow housemates and could cause offense to the viewing public,' Big Brother added, to which Mickey acknowledged: 'I did wrong, I apologize, I'm sorry, I can't take it back. I stepped over the line, and I take responsibility for doing the wrong thing because I lost my temper. And I've been trying to work on it my whole life, and I wish I would have had better self-control.' 'I'm very sorry, I'm ashamed of myself for losing it for a few seconds there,' he added of the incident with Chris. 'Nobody got touched or hurt, maybe some feelings got hurt, or maybe others have feelings about someone getting upset, but I'm sorry about that.' And when Big Brother said they had 'no option' but to ask Mickey to leave the house, Mickey understood. In fact, he admitted that he'd wanted to go the previous day when he was up for eviction, but he did not get voted out. 'I blame myself, I know it was my bad,' he said. 'I've got a short fuse and I know I upset a lot of people out there. And I'm sorry for that, I'm actually ashamed of myself for getting that hot. I went over the line, I did wrong. I guess, like you say, I'm a work in progress. I just want to pack my bags and leave. I wanted to leave yesterday, actually, but wasn't chosen. I'd like to leave now, actually.' But despite this, it has now been revealed that Mickey is pursuing legal action against Celebrity Big Brother, with his manager, Kimberly Hines, alleging in a statement to People that the show had disrespected Mickey by 'publicly embarrassing him.' There is also unrest over the fact that Mickey isn't receiving his full payout, with it being reported that he will only be paid 10% of his unverified £500,000 ($662k) fee. "There's no question that when Big Brother booked Mickey Rourke, they were fully aware of both his public persona and how it aligned with his Hollywood rebel image," Hines said in the statement, adding that ITV knew when booking Mickey that he would be "explosive, controversial and attention-grabbing — and that's exactly what they got, and more." "In our discussions, Big Brother was made fully aware of Mickey Rourke's background and lifestyle," the statement went on. "Yet rather than handle it professionally, they took it too far — publicly embarrassing him and using his removal as a marketing tool. That's not just unprofessional; it's deeply disrespectful and damaging." "To add insult to injury, Big Brother is now refusing to pay Mickey his full agreed-upon fee. His legal team is currently pursuing the matter," Hines concluded, claiming that Big Brother's use of Mickey's 'name and image' is "an insult to a true cinematic icon" after a "long and accomplished career."
Buzz Feed
16-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
JoJo Siwa Choked Back Tears After She Was Forced To Admit That She Is Questioning Her Gender Identity, And People Are Uncomfortable
As you may have heard, JoJo Siwa is currently taking part in the UK series of Celebrity Big Brother, which got off to a pretty rocky start earlier this month when she was subjected to shocking anti-gay comments from Hollywood actor Mickey Rourke. In uncomfortable scenes that aired last week, Mickey asked JoJo if she liked boys or girls, and JoJo replied: 'Me? Girls. My partner is nonbinary.' In response, Mickey said: "If I stay longer than four days, you won't be gay anymore,' and when JoJo calmly said: 'I can guarantee I'll still be gay, and I'll still be in a very happy relationship,' Mickey retorted: 'I'll tie you up.' Later, Mickey told former Love Island star Chris Hughes: "I'm going to vote the lesbian out real quick,' and after he was called out for his comments, Mickey used the F-slur while motioning towards JoJo and saying: 'I'm not talking about you.' Chris, 32, immediately leaped to JoJo's defense and sternly told Mickey that he couldn't say such things. He comforted JoJo throughout the day, and confronted Mickey again after the actor initially refused to apologize to JoJo despite getting a warning from Big Brother. For reference, Mickey ultimately ended up being removed from the Celebrity Big Brother house a couple of days later, and Chris and JoJo's friendship has gone from strength to strength, with the two becoming incredibly close on the show. In fact, the two stars are so close that on Monday night's episode, they were shown speaking in code with one another. In the early hours of the morning, Chris held out his hand and told JoJo to write out what she wanted to say, which she did, telling him: 'It makes sense, just think about it.' And JoJo appeared pensive the next morning. Speaking to reality star Ella Rae Wise, JoJo said she was in a 'deep thought session,' explaining: 'I'm the type of person that really need approval from my mom and my partner… Moreso my mom.' ITV Ella said that she'd realized in the house that she can't be in a fulfilled relationship if she is not fulfilled herself, and JoJo agreed as she revealed that she has a lot playing on her mind at the moment. She said: 'I think that's something I've realized in the house. Like, I love my partner so much… My thing is, I don't know if I'm all for me. And that's kind of what I've realized being here. Being removed from everything, I think I'm so overthinking everything.' Later that day, Big Brother exposed that JoJo and Chris had been communicating in secret in front of all of their housemates, and Chris's reaction was bizarre, to say the least. Speaking to the other stars, Chris insisted that he and JoJo had been discussing learning French and German at school before badly speaking in both languages in a bid to convince them. ITV 'We were bored and just doing, like… Yeah…' he trailed off, while JoJo reassured their housemates: 'I solemnly swear, put my hand on a bible, it had nothing to do with nominations.' 'So, what does 'it makes sense' mean?' TV presenter Trisha Goddard asked in reference to what Big Brother had told them they'd said to one another during the incident. ITV 'My sexuality,' JoJo abruptly confessed. 'My sexuality is what I said makes sense.' She and Chris were then summoned to speak with Big Brother in the Diary Room, where Big Brother directly asked the pair: 'What was the secret message?' ITV 'It's something that I'm not ready, necessarily, to be open about or upfront about, but it has to do with gender and how do I feel. Let's put it this way… Oh my god, this is a lot…' JoJo began before trailing off and becoming visibly upset. Chris comforted JoJo and pulled her in for a hug as her voice started to crack. 'I'll be fine,' she insisted, before sharing: 'Essentially, you have female, you have male. I've met a lot of females, love them, don't feel like them. Met a lot of males, love them, definitely not them. Met a lot of people in my life that are nonbinary, and these beautiful nonbinary people are who I feel the most like and… I don't know, it's not something I want to say about myself yet, but it's something that is confusing, and that's probably why we were talking about it last night.' ITV And JoJo was supported by Chris and their other housemates when she got choked up about the situation in the garden, with 32-year-old drag performer Danny Beard offering seriously meaningful words of wisdom as he supported the young star. ITV 'We're all good, it's a great conversation and one that I shouldn't be scared of having,' JoJo told her concerned housemates, and when asked why she felt scared, she added: 'I think because I don't know myself, all the answers, and so I think… We're good, it's great. There's nothing to do, nothing to change.' ITV 'I get you and I see you,' Danny then reassured her. 'I've been in this community for a while, and you're growing up in a public spotlight. You don't need to give anyone all the answers, ever. Ever. Even when you know them for you, you don't owe anyone anything, ever.' ITV 'I think that's why I'm afraid of giving any answer because I'm not sure,' JoJo admitted, to which Trisha replied: 'As long as you know who you are, and what have you. The truth is, it might hurt, people might judge you, but if the people you know and you love and your community and your support know the truth… Today's headlines, as they used to say, is tomorrow's loo paper.' ITV At this point, the other stars corrected Trisha's British phrase to 'today's headlines are tomorrow's fish and chips wrapper,' but the sentiment was appreciated nonetheless. And while viewers couldn't help but praise JoJo's honesty and vulnerability, as well as the way that the others supported her, the whole situation left them feeling pretty uncomfortable as they questioned whether the show was right to air what JoJo had said, considering she admitted that it wasn't something that she was ready to be public about. ITV 'JoJo Siwa is such an extraordinary human being. I can't help but feel Big Brother forced her hand in revealing details about her gender she wasn't ready to share, and I hope she was told this would air. But gosh, her openness is a breath of fresh air in this bleak world,' one person tweeted. 'Big Brother trying to get Jojo to confess to talking about nominations then accidentally forcing her into a gender discussion on national TV...,' somebody else added, while another user echoed: 'did big brother accidentally force jojo siwa to come out as non binary rn?' One more wrote: '#CBBUK did NOT have to air that conversation with Jojo. She was pushed to share something that she didn't seem ready to share. And they've broadcasted it. It would have been easier to… not have broadcasted it.' Despite the uncertain reaction to the scenes airing in any capacity, one thing that viewers did approve of was the way that Chris had JoJo's back earlier in the episode, with one popular tweet pointing out: 'Chris speaking German excuse was basically to protect Jojo because he knew she wasn't ready to share something so personal with the group, I just LOVE him.' ITV While somebody else wrote: 'chris making up a whole bit about speaking german to protect jojo from having to tell everyone what they were actually talking about is proper allyship in action omg it's made me a bit emotional.'
The Independent
11-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Dolly Parton musical suspended over homophobic abuse as star speaks out
The actors in a Dolly Parton-inspired musical have said they were forced to halt a performance in Manchester after an audience member allegedly expressed their 'disgust' over the inclusion of a gay character. Stevie Webb, who plays a super fan of the country music icon in the musical Here You Come Again, shared a TikTok in which he addressed the abuse he and his team are met with 'almost every week'. 'The amount of audience members we have had to eject from our show due to homophobia is insane,' he said. 'Just this week, in Manchester alone, last night we had to eject someone who was shouting out slurs. 'On Wednesday (5 February), we had to stop the whole show… leave the stage, because a woman was so disgusted that there was a gay character onstage.' Webb said there was a 'massive ruckus' during the performance as the rest of the audience began to shout at the woman, forcing them to take a 15-minute break. 'This is a Dolly Parton musical!' he continued. 'It's just me and [an actor playing] Dolly Parton onstage, my character and Dolly Parton.' Here You Come Again, directed by Gabriel Barre, is a musical comedy that features Parton's character as a fairy godmother giving life lessons in song to a fan going through difficult times. Webb said that London had been the worst experience, as he recalled a man who allegedly shouted the F-slur during one performance, complaining that he 'just wanted to see Dolly Parton'. 'It's really opened my eyes, because we're in such a bubble in this industry, but travelling the country and seeing how many people literally cannot bear to see a gay person depicted onstage, it's wild,' Webb said. 'I feel very sorry for them.' Webb urged potential audience members to read the synopsis of the production, as well as reminding themselves of the fact that 'it's a Dolly Parton musical'. Parton is renowned for her longtime support of the LGBT+ community, and is considered by many to be the 'original gay icon'. She declared her support for gay marriage in 2014. ATG Entertainment, which runs the Opera House in Manchester where one of the incidents took place, told the BBC that it has a 'zero tolerance' approach to such behaviour. The Opera House said these incidents were rare and that anyone engaging in abusive behaviour would be removed immediately. Parton announced the world premiere of her own music, Dolly: An Original Musical, last month, telling fans that it would have its first production in her home state of Tennessee. Parton, who was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999, continued: 'I've outlived so many plastic surgeons. But I actually have always wanted to do my life story as a musical. 'And I just thought that I wanted to see it done while I'm still around, to be able to oversee it and make sure that it's done properly in a way that I would want to see it, rather than to wait 'til I'm gone and let somebody else decide how they think it should be done.'
