Hartley Sawyer, who played the Elongated Man in The Flash, has been fired over resurfaced derogatory tweets. The screenshots of deleted tweets from 2012 and 2014 contained racist and misogynistic comments, as well as references to sexual assault and domestic violence.
In a statement, The CW, Warner Bros. TV, Berlanti Productions and executive producer Eric Wallace said: “Hartley Sawyer will not be returning for Season 7 of The Flash. In regards to Mr. Sawyer’s post on social media, we do not tolerate derogatory remarks that target any race, ethnicity, national origin, gender of sexual orientation. Such remarks are antithetical to our values and policies, which strive and evolve to promote a safe, inclusive and productive environment for our workforce.”
Sawyer apologised in a post on his Instagram, saying: “I’m not here to make excuses – regardless of the intention, my words matter and they carry profound consequences. And mine can and have caused pain and embarrassment, along with feelings I can only imagine, to supporters and fans, my cast mates, the crew, my colleagues and friends. I owe them all an apology. And I owe each of you an apology. Thank you for holding me accountable.
“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’ve 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.”
Wallace made an additional statement on Twitter, stressing his commitment “to bringing permanent change to the work environment [here] on The Flash” in the midst of the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Sawyer’s co-stars also took to Instagram to address the situation:
More than 3000 people have signed a petition https://www.change.org/p/warner-brothers-bring-back-hartley-sawyer-to-the-flash to reinstate the actor to his former role, arguing that he is a changed person, but it seems that the decision is final.
Words by Isla Glen