Hollywood actor Hartley Sawyer who played Ralph Dibny a.k.a. Elongated Man in ‘The Flash’ TV show, has been fired from the series after his tweets containing misogynist and racist references surfaced.
The tweets, all made before he joined The CW Television Network series, made references to sexual assault and contain racist and homophobic language.
Sawyer’s Twitter account has since been deleted but screenshots of the old posts are still in circulation online.
His firing comes amid nationwide protests against systemic racism in the wake of George Floyd‘s death in Minneapolis, US on May 25.
In one of the tweets from 2012, the actor wrote;
The only thing keeping me from doing mildly racist tweets is the knowledge that Al Sharpton (American civil rights activist) would never stop complaining about me.
Sawyer also shared tweets which referred to assaulting women and one reads “Date rape myself so I don’t have to masturbate.”
See more of his tweets below;
Following outrage incited by Sawyer’s tweets, The CW, the series producers Warner Bros Television and Berlanti Productions have confirmed his sack in a statement released on Monday June 8.
It reads;
Hartley Sawyer will not be returning for Season 7 of The Flash. In regards to Mr. Sawyer’s posts on social media, we do not tolerate derogatory remarks that target any race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation. Such remarks are antithetical to our values and polices, which strive and evolve to promote a safe, inclusive and productive environment for our workforce.
The Flash executive producer, Eric Wallace also shared his thought on the firing of Sawyer from the long-running series.
Referring to Sawyer’s social media posts, he wrote;
They broke my heart and made me mad as hell, and they’re indicative of the larger problem in our country. Because at present, our country still accepts and protects the continual harassment — unconscious or otherwise — terrorizing and brutalizing of Black and Brown people, which is far too often fatal. That’s why our country is standing up once again and shouting “ENOUGH” to bring about active change.
Sawyer went ahead to issue an apology on Instagram saying he is ashamed and disappointed at his ignorance when he made those tweets.
He wrote;
My words, irrelevant of being meant with an intent of humor, were hurtful, and unacceptable. I am ashamed I was capable of these really horrible attempts to get attention at that time. I regret them deeply. This was not acceptable behavior. These were words I threw out at the time with no thought or recognition of the harm my words could do, and now have done today.
I am incredibly sorry, ashamed and disappointed in myself for my ignorance back then. I want to be very clear: this is not reflective of what I think or who I am now.
Years ago, thanks to friends and experiences who helped me to open my eyes, I began my journey into becoming a more responsible adult – in terms of what I say, what I do, and beyond. I have largely kept that journey private, and this is another way that I have let so many down. I still have more work to do. But how I define myself now does not take away the impact of my words, or my responsibility for them. I am very sorry.
Sawyer joined The Flash in 2017 as Ralph Dibny, aka Elongated Man.
He recurred on the show initially and was upped to series regular in 2018.
