In a recent interview with #TheBreakfastClub, actor Jason Mitchell opened up a bit about the misconduct allegations against him, The Chi and lessons he’s learned along the way.
What We Know:
- Mitchell has had quite a year so far and we don’t mean that in a good way. Back in May, he was dropped from the Showtime hit show The Chi on allegations of inappropriate behavior and within a week he lost his chance to receive a MTV Movie & TV Award for Best Performance in a show.
- Though he never disclosed exact details, Mitchell also touched on being dropped from his management company UTA and Netflix movie Desperados where he played a leading role. He vaguely describes helping a fellow cast mate get home after a lit night out, which backfired and led to his release from his role.
- In terms of The Chi, Mitchell alleges that there were no real issue between him and Tiffany Boone, who played his love interest. He said “there actually was no situation with Tiffany” and that Boone was “put in a position” because Floyd Davis made a statement on Boone’s behalf. He added that the claims that Tiffany Boone left the show because of him were “ridiculous” and that she really left because she got a better job.
- Mitchell said that he wasn’t able to give his side of the story before being fired. “When you’re dealing with HR, it doesn’t work like that at all,” said Mitchell. “They’ll never pop out and tell you, ‘Oh, this is what was said by that person. This is what was said by that person.’ You never get the luxury of finding out exactly how somebody felt about something.”
- He then explained the “situation” between him and The Chi‘s showrunner, Ayanna Floyd Davis. After filming a few emotional scenes, Floyd Davis asked him if he was OK. He told her that he wasn’t doing great and she responded, “Well, we just want to make sure that you’re doing OK so that you don’t go home and self-medicate.” Mitchell was offended by the statement and expressed his dislike to Lena Waithe who went to HR and the situation led to a “heated discussion”.
- Mitchell was soon fired after the interaction on harassment allegations. When asked if he understands why he was released from multiple projects, he doesn’t give a clear cut yes or no but says that he has and will continue to hold himself accountable for his “mistakes” and not make the same “mistakes”.
What do y’all this about our conversation with #JasonMitchell ? pic.twitter.com/AjAYZ9RdxL
— The Breakfast Club (@breakfastclubam) November 4, 2019
The interview went on for 51 minutes, yet no real questions were answered. Mitchell says that he placed himself in situations where his actions could be assessed in more ways than one from those with different perspectives.
