Celebrities (with public accounts) must think twice about what they like on X (formerly Twitter). Netizens caught actress and TV personality Gabrielle Union liking and then unliking a post about Vivica A. Fox’s unmatched success compared to Taraji P. Henson’s.
Quote-tweeting TMZ’s report about Fox’s statement regarding her not experiencing Henson’s troubles as a Black actress, an X user added, “[Fox] hasn’t experienced Taraji’s successes either. Next.”
Union’s likes tab revealed she approved the post but removed it by unliking it.
To eagle-eyed followers, the Daddy’s Little Girls co-star seemed to be taking sides. But her support for Henson is evident in the fact that she liked an X quote-tweet about how actress Hannah Waddingham had Tom Cruise and 4,500 active military members waiting for her on the Mission Impossible 8 set, yet Taraji couldn’t get a driver to escort her to The Color Purple set.
Neither Union, 51, nor Fox, 59, have publicly addressed the issue.
Social media users began comparing and contrasting Henson’s and Fox’s careers, with many pointing out how Fox broke into the entertainment biz in the early ’80s.
The 59-year-old’s statement to the TMZ reporter wasn’t a snub. She stated she didn’t share the same experiences Henson, 53, recently publicized.
“You know, darling, to each its own,” the Two Can Play That Game actress said. “I’m very happy, very blessed…to each its own. I didn’t have that experience. To get your piece out is important. I totally understand that, and I love my girls for looking out for each other.”
The Hustle & Flow actress revealed The Color Purple stars had to drive themselves to the set without security in an interview with the New York Times.
“A lot of the stuff on that set, [her castmates] got because I fought,” the Benjamin Buttons star said, diving into the inconveniences her co-stars faced. “They gave us rental cars, and I was like, ‘I can’t drive myself to set in Atlanta.’ This is insurance liability. It’s dangerous. Now they robbing people. What do I look like, taking myself to work by myself in a rental car? So, I was like, ‘Can I get a driver or security to take me?”
When she brought her complaints to set staff, they told her if they did it for her, they would have to do it for everyone else.
“Well, do it for everybody! It’s stuff like that, stuff I shouldn’t have to fight for. I was on set of Empire fighting for trailers that wasn’t infested with bugs,” Henson, who played Shug Avery in the 2023 musical adaption of The Color Purple, said.
Danielle Brooks portrayed Sofia in the 2023 film and revealed her castmates didn’t have dressing rooms or food during the initial rehearsals.
