Last week, sexual misconduct allegations were made against actor Jason Mitchell, resulting in the 32-year-old being dropped from Showtime’s “The Chi.” In the wake of the reports of multiple complaints being filed against Mitchell, his co-star Tiffany Boone and the show’s second-season showrunner Ayanna Floyd came forward with public statements discussing the matter.
On Wednesday (May 29), “The Chi” creator Lena Waithe broke her silence on the situation. During her statement, the acclaimed screenwriter, actress and producer focused on Boone, who claims to be a victim of Mitchell’s alleged harassment.
“I think Tiffany is a wonderful actress and an extremely brave woman. I wish her nothing but success in the future. I look forward to getting back to work on season three,” Waithe shared in a statement with The Hollywood Reporter.
In addition to her brief commentary, a source close to the situation reportedly claimed that Waithe was only made aware of Mitchell’s alleged behavior after the first season of the show wrapped. However, a statement from the show’s showrunner seems to challenge that claim.
Floyd reflected on her own experiences, stating “when I took the helm in season two, it was Lena who informed me of the issues between Jason Mitchell and Tiffany Boone from season one, and that Tiffany was thinking of leaving the show because of it.”
Floyd continued: “As a result of this information, I discussed Tiffany’s claims with the studio’s HR department and set up HR presentations for the writers, cast and crew. Ultimately, everyone was well aware of Jason’s behavior and his multiple HR cases, including Lena, the creator and an executive producer of the show, who is very involved at the studio and network level.”
According to Floyd, Waithe was well aware of the situation and the multiple complaints that had been filed against Mitchelle but didn’t do anything about it and therefore allegedly played a role in allowing the behavior to continue.
As pointed out by reports, Waithe has publicly came forward to support the #MeToo movement in the past, during which she stated that she would be an alley if put in a position where her support could help make a difference in the industry.
“I’ve been very involved in Time’s Up and that movement, and for season two, we’re making sure that women feel safe,” she shared with The Hollywood Reporter in June 2018. “[I]f you want to play that game and be disrespectful or misbehave on set with an actress or anyone, I’ll happily call Showtime and say, ‘This person has to go,’ and you will get shot up and it’ll be a wonderful finale.”
At the time of this report, writers of “The Chi” are working on how to handle the absence of Mitchell’s character on the show for season three.