June 3, 2014
Jonah Hill Calls Use of Anti-Gay Slur 'Disgusting'
Jason St. Amand READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Is Jonah Hill following in Alec Baldwin's footsteps?
Hill apologized Tuesday after being caught freaking out on a paparazzo last weekend, at which time the 30-year-old actor used an anti-gay slur, TMZ reports.
Hill was out and about in Los Angeles over the weekend when some paparazzi started asking him question. Initially, the "Wolf of Wall Street" star didn't say anything but one of the paparazzi got a reaction out of the actor after making fun of his flora print shorts.
"I like the shorts though, bro. They are pretty sexy," the man, who is not from TMZ, said. He followed Hill for another 40-seconds before telling him to have a good day -- but that's when Hill flipped out.
"Suck my dick, you faggot," Hill is heard saying in TMZ's clip, which was posted Tuesday.
Hill apologized for the remark, calling his actions "disgusting," when speaking with Howard Stern Tuesday morning:
This is a heartbreaking situation for me. I'm upset...From the day I was born, and publicly, I've been a gay rights activist. This person had been following me around -- just to give it some context not to excuse it in any way -- all day saying hurtful things about my family, really hurtful things about me personally. I played into exactly what he wanted and lost my cool. In that moment I said a disgusting word that does not at all reflect how I feel about any group of people. I grew up with gay family members, I'm leaving here to spend the day with one of my closest co-workers and best friend who is gay, who is getting married -- I'm going to stand at his wedding. I am not at all defending my choice of words but I'm happy to be the poster boy for thinking about what you say and how those words are rooted in hate and that's bullshit and I shouldn't have said that...
What I said in that moment was disgusting and a hurtful term. I should have said nothing or "fuck you..." I'm happy to take the heat for using this disgusting word. What I won't allow is for anyone -- it would break my heart to think that anyone -- especially with all the work that I've done and all the loved ones that I have -- that I would be against anyone for their sexuality.
You can listen to the clip over at TMZ.
Hill's reaction may come as a surprise to some since the actor has been vocal about his support for LGBT rights and even called out Russia's anti-gay laws before the Sochi Winter Olympics took place.
Alec Baldwin came under fire for a similar incident last November when he allegedly used anti-gay slurs towards a photographer in New York City. GLAAD called him out, as did Anderson Cooper and Andrew Sullivan, leading MSNBC to cancel his show.