Hartley Sawyer, Fired?

Hartley Sawyer, Fired?

By Starr Perkins

¨Hartley Sawyer who played Ralph Dibny, The Elongated Man, on the CW superhero show ¨The Flash” was fired Monday as a result of tweets from 2012 and 2014 resurfacing that were degrading woman and where he called himself a racist.¨ States nbcnews.com. Sawyer joked about being at a dinner and ¨exposed myself as a racist, again.¨ He said in another that he would ¨beat the hell¨ out of his wife if he had one. A lot of people became offensive with his words and began to leave offensive things in his comments on his Instagram account. Skai Jackson, a former Disney channel star, commented on june 5th, ¨Hartley Sawyer you've been exposed.¨ Many agreed with Skai´s stance even after Sawyer apologized. ¨I am not here to make any excuses- regardless of my 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. Thank you for holding me accountable.¨ Sawyer wrote on his Instagram account May 30th. Even though Sawyer apologized for his actions it still won't help get his job back and win back the love his fans had for him. It also seemed like the producers had a lot to say about the matter. ¨The Flash¨ is a family show for all families, including black and brown ones, showrunner Eric Wallace said in a statement Sawyer´s release from the show. Wallace explained that seeing the actor´s social media posts made him ¨mad as hell” and were indicative of a larger problem. When you think you delete things on social media doesn't mean that it is entirely gone, somewhere in the cloud it's floating around waiting to be released and in Hartley´s case the resurfacing ruined him is show wise. Eric Wallace also posted a tweet on instagram. ¨I am committed to bringing permanent change to the work environment here on THE FLASH. Yes, this is a family show. But it´s for all families. That includes black and brown ones. In order to facilitate this, I will continue to find black and brown writers, directors, actors and producers of all genders to help tell flash stories. Their stories are a part of the American narrative, too, and must be heard. And the more you hear and see us, the more you will begin to recognize one simple fact: ¨Were Human beings, too.¨ Wallace finishes in a black lives matter statement. Even though Sawyeris no longer on the show does not mean that´s the end of the character. Tvline.com states that Wallace says, ¨I'm not saying by all means that it's the end of the character,¨ Wallace continued. ¨In fact, quite the opposite. We just don't know when he will return, or what form he will return.¨ Seems like the producers and writers are undecided on what will happen to the elongated man in season seven but what we do know is that he will not be played by the same actor. Grant Gustin who plays Barry Allen/The Flash responded to Sawyer´s tweets saying, ¨I don't have much to add because Eric´s thoughts are stated so eloquently and powerfully. I will say I was shocked, saddened and angry when I saw the tweets. Words Matter.¨ Gustin finished. Many fans who looked up to Sawyer are saddened and sense betrayal as the actor uses such foul words to describe what women should be treated like and how their opinions do not matter.

Eric Wallace also stated that, ¨In regards to Mr. Sawyer´s posts on social media, we do not tolerate derogatory remarks that target any race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation...¨ What that means is that when you're on a tv show who has brown characters or mixed you need to be cautious of the things you do and say on social media because it can really hurt people's feelings and make them feel very unwelcomed. Sawyer later on deactivated his twitter account in late May, even though his account was gone doesn't mean that the tweets were too. ¨All woman should be in sex farms (from May 2011) which was a year before the comment he made about what he would do it he had a wife in (February 2012). From Screenrant.com says that firing Hartley Sawyer was the right decision for the Arrowverse. ¨The decision to fire Hartley Sawyer was not made lightly, and it's already proving controversial. Flash fans have launched a petition for Sawyer to be rehired, arguing the decision was unfair. For all that´s the case though it was the right move for the CW, producers Warner Bros, TV, and Berlanti productions.¨ Some fans have heartache over the shocking news but some are relieved knowing that he will no longer be part of the show making such poor judgement among the women in the arrowverse.

Although Sawyer had a big role in the upcoming seventh season many fans think that it was good that he was fired and no longer part of the arrowverse. ¨Hartley Sawyer firing is no mere example of ´cancel culture,´ but rather indicates how important a superhero actor plays in modern society. The actors who portray superheroes become almost indivisible in the public consciousness from the heroes themselves.¨ But in this case Sawyer is not a role model right now. Millions of people watch The Flash and develop a love for each character right away, but when they see that character start to become a villain in real life then the fans won't see them as a symbol of justice and hope, they will see them as a person who degrades women and takes their job as a joke. Hartley Sawyer has been an iconic character since season 4 and has developed a sort of love and hate relationship with a character who also plays the villian in some episodes. The dynamic between the two is questionable but no doubt entertaining but now with Sawyer gone what will it mean for his so called love interest? Fans are waiting on what might happen but the other fans who simply adore Sawyer will not stop fighting to get him rehired but it has been four months and nothing has changed so it is indefinite that Sawyer will not return to the show and could potentially be replaced with another actor who matches The Elongated Man qualifications. The Flash is a show that helps build up character and gives you the strength to be your own hero and to never give up on what you believe in, Berlanti made a good call firing Sawyer because no one would want an actor who degrades others into family who has been together for years let some newcomer bring all this negativity into a work environment stated Wallace.

The Flash has been on since 2014 which is plenty of time to start a huge fandom with fans. Each character on the show has something significant and special about them which makes the fans go into a frenzy when something happens to them. It really doesn't matter how many times Sawyer apologizes for his actions it wont prepare the damage already done. There is always going to be understudy for an actor who screws up and is not equipped for the job. Sawyer made a big mistake and in the end it cost him his job.

Story of his life.

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