Actor Hartley Sawyer has been fired from The Flash after a host of his tweets containing misogynist and racist references were surfaced in the past week.
The tweets, all from before he joined The CW series, make references to sexual assault and contain racist and homophobic language.
Sawyer’s Twitter account has been deleted, but screenshots of the old posts have circulated online in the past two weeks. His firing also comes amid nationwide protests against systemic racism in the wake of George Floyd’s May 25 death in Minneapolis.
“As a lad, one of my favourite activity was kidnapping homeless women and cutting off their b**bs,” he wrote in a tweet he shared in June 2012.
He also boasted about being a racist and found humour in the alarming suicide rate in the world.
“Out at a dinner and just exposed myself as a racist, AGAIN,” he wrote in 2014.
Below are some of the tweets.
After fans dug up the tweets, he issued an apology and described how ashamed he was for his ignorance back then.
“My words, irrelevant of being meant with an intent of humor, were hurtful, and unacceptable,” he wrote in an Instagram post.
“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,” he added.
His employers, CW, have now fired him for those tweets and his Twitter account has been deleted.
“Hartley Sawyer will not be returning for season seven of The Flash,” a statement from The CW, producers Warner Bros read.
His firing also comes amid nationwide protests against systemic racism in the wake of George Floyd’s May 25 death in Minneapolis.