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Last Tuesday, Variety reported on how former America’s Got Talent host Gabrielle Union was reportedly fired from the show after she had raised concerns about the “toxic environment” on that show that included racist jokes. Union and her fellow host, Julian Hough (who was also not asked to return after season 14) were also reportedly subject to extensive notes on their appearances. Hough denies this allegation, but Union was reportedly critiqued for having hairstyles that were “too black.”

Following the firestorm and the surge of support for Union after these allegation surfaces, ow, the producers of the show have reached out, again to Variety, and issued a joint statement:

We remain committed to ensuring a respectful workplace for all employees and take very seriously any questions about workplace culture…We are working with Ms. Union through her representatives to hear more about her concerns, following which we will take whatever next steps may be appropriate.

Union has not personally addressed or commented on this, however many have seen her retweet of writer Joelle Monique (a friend of the site and all-around great writer) and her commentary on it as a kind of statement.

This! This! AND THIIISSSSSSS!!!!!! https://t.co/RCrtKtkQ4L

— Gabrielle Union (@itsgabrielleu) December 1, 2019

We don’t want to impute any meaning to Union’s tweet or assume what she means by it, but the timing certainly raises eyebrows. It may be that there are on-going legal discussions that preclude her from commenting, but we don’t know that for sure either.

However this situation develops, we hope that it leads to a better, safer culture, not just on America’s Got Talent, but on all toxic shows and workplaces, because there are many out there.

(via: Variety, image: Angel Weiss/AFP/Getty Images)

As the weekend winds down and December starts up, here are a few other things we saw today.

• Disneyland is modifying it’s scariest ride to be a little less scary. No, not The Haunted Mansion, Snow White’s Scary Adventure! (via EW)
• Imagine us sipping a hot cup of tea or bone broth soup as we watch Dakota Johnson destroy Ellen for pretending she didn’t invite Dakota to her birthday. Oh and Ellen missed that party yo hand out With George W. Bush. (via Out)
• An oldie but a goodie: Picard sings “Let it Snow.”
• If that doesn’t get you in the Holiday spirit, might I suggest a sweet holiday romantic comedy…podcast? Deck the Halls (with Matrimony!) has three seasons of mad cap romance and laughs, the perfect audio drama treat!
• Want to be terrified? Read about this voting machine break down in Pennsylvania and then call your reps and demand national vote by mail! (via The New York Times)
• Did you catch the new sequel to E.T. that came out this week? No. That’s because it was an Xfinity commercial…that was nonetheless better than a lot of real movies.
  

  Here’s the full version of the Xfinity ET commercial that just aired on the #MacysDayParade 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/kFxrQmGRiC

  — ThrillGeek (@thrillgeek) November 28, 2019

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Gabrielle Union has received an immense amount of support following her recent controversial exit from America’s Got Talent.

It was announced last week that Union would be leaving the NBC hit show after her first and only season amid complaints of a “toxic culture” on the set. She left after expressing concern over offensive events, including a racist incident in which former late night talk show host Jay Leno made an inappropriate joke. 

But it also became clear that Union was also receiving feedback critiquing her hairstyles as being “too Black” for viewers.

Now in response, Black women on social media are reviving the #BlackHairChallenge to showcase the versatility of Black women’s hair. Among them, award-winning illustrator Vashti Harrison has also created a sweet meme in solidarity with Union.

Harrison, the illustrator behind the images in Matthew Cherry’s Hair Love book,showed off these hairstyles that we, as Black women, are blessed to be able to rock.

We are versatile #BlackHairChallenge @gabunion

A post shared by Vashti Harrison (@vashtiharrison) on Nov 29, 2019 at 9:45pm PST

“We are versatile,” Harrison captioned the post on Instagram, while using the #BlackHairChallenge hashtag. The hashtag first trended in 2017.

From ‘fros to locs, braids to perms, it is clear that the flexibility of our hair, and the skill it takes to produce a lot of these ‘dos, are truly magic.

The post Best-Selling Illustrator Vashti Harrison Adds To #BlackHairChallenge In Support Of Gabrielle Union appeared first on Essence.

Coming soon to theaters this holiday season is the Agatha Christie-esque mystery thriller Knives Out directed by Rian Johnson.

Acclaimed writer and director Rian Johnson (Brick, Looper, Star Wars: The Last Jedi) pays tribute to mystery mastermind Agatha Christie in Knives Out, a fun, modern-day murder mystery where everyone is a suspect.  When renowned crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead at his estate just after his 85th birthday, the inquisitive and debonair Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is mysteriously enlisted to investigate.

From Harlan’s dysfunctional family to his devoted staff, Blanc sifts through a web of red herrings and self-serving lies to uncover the truth behind Harlan’s untimely death. With an all-star ensemble cast including Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, LaKeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford and Jaeden Martell, Knives Out is a witty and stylish whodunit guaranteed to keep audiences guessing until the very end.

BGN’s Jeandra Lebeauf interviews Rian Johnson, Don Johnson, Katherine Langford and Jaeden Martell (not featured in the videos below), Jamie Lee Curtis, Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas, and Chris Evans.

Knives Out releases in theaters November 27th.

The post The Team Behind ‘Knives Out’ Cuts Deep in our Interviews! appeared first on Black Girl Nerds.

Source: Frazer Harrison / Getty

Just weeks after Gabrielle Union was reportedly fired from “America’s Got Talent,” the actress took to social media to thank her fans for their support.

“So many tears, so much gratitude,” she wrote. “THANK YOU! Just when you feel lost, adrift, alone… you got me up off the ground. Humbled and thankful, forever.”

Gabrielle’s departure comes amid rumors that the host was let go after reportedly trying to escalate a culturally insensitive Jay Leno joke to NBC’s HR, Variety reports. The 47-year-old was also allegedly critiqued by the network for wearing hairstyles deemed “too Black.”

A spokesperson for NBC and Fremantle told People on Tuesday of the incident, “America’s Got Talent has a long history of inclusivity and diversity in both our talent and the acts championed by the show. The judging and host line-up has been regularly refreshed over the years and that is one of the reasons for AGT’s enduring popularity. NBC and the producers take any issues on set seriously.”

Gabrielle’s former NBA star hubby showed support for his wife on Twitter.

“Men lie, Women lie, numbers don’t” Over this past year I’ve been approached by many people saying that my wife @itsgabrielleu is the main reason they’ve started watching #AGT or that they love her insight and sincerity on the show.”

Continuing, “So when i got the news that my wife was being fired—my first question was obviously why!? Iam still waiting on a good answer to that question. But if anyone knows @itsgabrielleu or have heard of her you know she’s an advocate for our community and culture. As proud as i were of her being selected as a judge on #AGT— Iam even more proud of her standing up for what she stands for and that’s US.”