Richard Dreyfuss is in trouble, and no bigger boat can save him. The actor recently found himself in hot water for comments that he made during a Jaws screening. The actor, famous for playing Hooper, appeared at a screening in Beverly, Massachusetts. However, things went south during a Q&A session with the actor.
Audience members called Dreyfuss' comments both "homophobic" and "misogynistic." Even the executive director of the theater is trying to distance themselves. J. Casey Soward, executive director of The Cabot, blasted Dreyfuss in a statement, saying his comments do not "reflect the values of inclusivity and respect that we uphold as an organization."
"We regret that an event that was meant to be a conversation to celebrate an iconic movie instead became a platform for political views," Soward continued. "We take full responsibility for the oversight in not anticipating the direction of the conversation and for the discomfort it caused to many patrons."
Richard Dreyfuss Draws Controversy
So what exactly did Dreyfuss do? Well, the actor began his Q&A session in a flora-printed dress over his normal clothes. He began his Q&A by dancing to Taylor Swift's "Love Story." He swayed back and forth and swung his cane around like he was Willy Wonka. It was all light-hearted and not particularly controversial. However, Dreyfuss then went on a rant. He spoke about everything from the #MeToo movement, transgender youth, and also Barbra Streisand. Look I don't know exactly what Dreyfuss said, but many audience members took offense to the actor and his view points.
They blasted the actor afterward on social media. One called him disgusting. "This was disgusting. How could The Cabot not have vetted his act better," Cheri Ziegra wrote on Facebook. "Apparently (I found out too late), he has a reputation for spewing this kind of racist, homophobic, misogynistic bullcrap. ... We did NOT get what we paid for (which we all assumed would be a light, fun evening listening to stories and anecdotes about RD's time on the Vineyard making 'Jaws.') This was offensive and we demand a refund."
We walked out of his interview tonight along with hundreds of others because of his racist, homophobic (and) misogynistic rant," Lisa Howe commented.
Meanwhile, the theater said they "deeply regret(s) the distress" Dreyfuss caused. "We are in active dialogue with our patrons about their experience and are committed to learning from this event how to better enact our mission of entertaining, educating and inspiring our community," Soward said.
