Jenny Slate took to her Instagram to announce that she will no longer be the voice of the character Missy Foreman-Greenwald, a young mixed-race girl on the animated comedy “Big Mouth.”
Slate explained in the Instagram post that” Black characters on an animated show should be played by Black people.”
Slate explained that accepting the voiceover role was “flawed” and an example of “white privilege.”
“I acknowledge how my original reasoning was flawed, that it existed as an example of white privilege and unjust allowances made within a system of societal white supremacy, and that in me playing ‘Missy,’ I was engaging in an act of erasure of Black people.”
Slate continued, “Ending my portrayal of ‘Missy’ is one step in a life-long process of uncovering the racism in my actions.”
Slate said that although she cannot change the past, she can take “accountability” for her choices. “I will continue to engage in meaningful anti-racist action, to be thoughtful about the messages in my work, to be curious and open to feedback, and to do my best to take responsibility for the ways that I am a part of the problem.”
The actress closed out the post by apologizing to those that she may have hurt. “I am so very sorry. Black voices must be heard. Black Lives Matter.”
After Slate’s announcement, the creators of the show, Nick Kroll, Andrew Goldberg, Mark Levin, and Jennifer Flackett, shared that they supported her decision and announced their plan to recast the role with a black actor.
“We sincerely apologize for and regret our original decision to cast a white actor to voice a biracial character,” they wrote. “We made a mistake, took our privilege for granted, and we’re working hard to do better moving forward.”
