Constance Wu talks about putting mental health as her top priority. Image Source: RTE
Constance Wu talks about putting mental health as her top priority.
Actress Constance Wu details in her new memoir, "Making a Scene," that after her 2019 tweets, which she sent after her ABC sitcom "Fresh Off the Boat" was renewed for season six, she received massive backlash, which affected her mental health.
The last episode of season five was planned to serve as a series finale, and Constance said that the original showrunner was scheduled to leave as well, in her letter claiming that the numbers pointed to the demise of the show when they closed up season five. The actress alleged that her team asked ABC if she might work on other ventures in light of the circumstance. Constance said that the cancellation became inevitable even though the network gave them the go-ahead to do so but made no guarantees.
Constance Wu starred in Crazy Rich Asians, and the movie was favorably received by the industry and went on to become a huge box office hit. After the popularity of the film and the lack of Asian American representation in the industry, people began to question if the network would cancel the show, but the actress added that she didn't believe that would happen based on the ratings.
The actress expressed her amazement at the news that the program had been picked up for a sixth season, noting that due to her studio contract, she was forced to put all other intriguing ideas on hold to return to the set of "Fresh Off the Boat" and begin filming. Constance said in her letter that the new beginning she had been looking forward to would have to wait for the time being and that the news of the renewal had left her feeling overwhelmed and as though a tsunami had hit her body.
Constance said according to her memoir, she endured her discomfort for a long time while trying to keep everything intact for everyone else. However, at some point, she felt she could no longer handle it and needed to vent her emotions somewhere other than her overburdened body, so she decided to post them on social media. The actress claimed that her only concern was the urge to produce a sound and that she did not consider the context gap or give a damn about how horrible it looked or sounded.
After the tweets were posted and became viral, she faced hostility from both fans and colleagues in the industry. People referred to her as "ungrateful" and claimed that she was "an ungrateful girl creating a scene" and that she had become a meme and the subject of righteous outrage. The actress stopped checking social media throughout the backlash but continued to get messages from the fans and the industry friends on her email. She mentioned one specific mail that she received from a former co-star that had a profound impact on her.
Constance said that her former co-star, (without taking any names) had informed her in writing that she could never make amends for her awful deeds and abominable ungratefulness. She went on to say that the former co-star insisted that she bake cookies for her co-star Randall Park and all of the FOTB crew members, as well as bow and scrape at their feet, but added that even that would not be enough to compensate for what she had done. She claimed that the co-star reprimanded her for detracting from the one shining light of hope for Asian Americans and for being too conceited to take into account everyone else's roles on the show. She told her how much her nephew enjoyed the program and how she had failed him. She also emphasized how dissatisfied he had been and how there was no way she could ever help compensate for it. Constance added that she felt hopeless and terrified after getting the mail and that her heart was filled with sharp objects.
Constance wrote further that her head started to spin and she thought why wouldn’t her co-star believe her remorse she felt that she needed a wound to prove that she was hurt the way everyone was and like everyone said that she deserved to be hurt, the actress said that the wound could not be a little wound, but the biggest wound in the world for it to be enough. Constance writes that soon her body stopped being a body and somehow changed into a sound that according to her was so dangerously high-pitched that it sounded similar to a chalkboard's nails or a violin string that had been yanked taut enough to cut flesh. The actress had found herself on the balcony railing of her fifth-floor apartment and was staring wildly down at the New York City street below in a state of careless desperation. The actress claimed that as she began to lift herself over the fence, the scream supposedly shot through her like electricity.
Constance Wu wrote that a friend eventually located her and pulled her away from the edge of the balcony, down the elevator, and into a taxi, where she gasped and dialed her publicist for assistance out of fear for her life and fear of acting inappropriately. The actress ended up in a mental hospital's psychiatric emergency room. She remembers getting there feeling dizzy, with swollen eyes tucked away by tear-engorged contact lenses, her mouth pasty from unbrushed teeth, and her hair in a tangle. Her hair elastics were even taken away out of fear that she would hurt herself with them.
Constance detailed how, while being observed, she slept that night on a cot in the unoccupied waiting room. She sobbed till exhaustion caused her to pass out. The following morning, she was informed of what had occurred by the two intake counselors. She nearly jumped out because she was so impatient. She received the aid she required. Constance claimed that Fresh Off The Boat impacted her life in such a way that following the backlash on social media, she was able to obtain the assistance she required and locate a therapist who would treat famous actors and artists and could relate to her unique situation. Constance expressed her gratitude that she read a letter of apology to everyone on the FOTB set when she returned for season six and everybody supported her.
The actress appreciated Randall Park by saying that having him as her co-star for those tumultuous six years was like winning the lottery, adding that she does not have words to describe how grateful she is for his grace and patience. She added that she is embarrassed that she wasn’t as wonderful as him, but she aspires to be, and she sees him getting better every day. In terms of how to be a good human being, he is her gold standard.
She now thinks that rather than being a setback, the entire episode may have functioned as a beneficial filter, allowing her to recognize the people who were on her side and weren't influenced by misleading claims or social media numbers. After spending so much of her public life worrying about what others thought of her, she said it was liberating to finally stop doing so.
Constance Wu will be seen in the upcoming movie "Lyle Lyle, Crocodile". Her memoir, Making a Scene, is out now.
