AWARD-WINNING actor Jamie Foxx is best known for portraying Ray Charles in the 2004 film Ray.
On August 4, 2023, the 55-year-old faced being ‘canceled’ after one of his social media posts drew accusations of antisemitism.
GettyJamie Foxx was released from a mysterious hospitalization in May 2023[/caption]
Who is Jamie Foxx?
Eric Marlon Bishop – professionally known as Jamie Foxx – was born in Terrell, Texas, on December 13, 1967.
Following his Hollywood success, Foxx starred in and produced his own sitcom, The Jamie Foxx Show, from 1996 to 2001.
He also gained prominence for his film roles in films including:
Django Unchained (2012)Baby Driver (2017)Just Mercy (2019)Soul (2020)
Foxx is also known for playing the supervillain Electro in the Marvel Spider-Man franchise.
Why is ‘Jamie Foxx canceled’ trending?
On August 4, 2023 – nearly four months since Foxx’s mysterious hospitalization – the actor was put under fire for a cryptic Instagram post that some users labeled ‘antisemitic.’
The recovering actor posted a message writing: “They killed this dude name Jesus… What do you think they’ll do to you?” and used the hashtags #fakefriends #fakelove.
Foxx has since deleted his post after accusations of antisemitism came flooding in.
An account named, A Wider Frame, which focuses on Jewish issues, described Foxx’s post as a “horrifically antisemitic message to his 16.7 million followers.”
On Saturday, August 5, Foxx took to social media again, but this time, to apologize and clarify the meaning behind his post.
“I want to apologize to the Jewish community and everyone who was offended by my post. I now know my choice of words have caused offense and I’m sorry,” he wrote. “That was never my intent.”
“To clarify, I was betrayed by a fake friend and that’s what I meant with ‘they’ not anything more,” he added.
“I only have love in my heart for everyone. I love and support the Jewish community. My deepest apologies to anyone who was offended.”
What did Jennifer Aniston say about Jamie Foxx’s post?
Eagle-eyed Instagram users noted that Jennifer Aniston – Foxx’s Horrible Bosses co-star – was allegedly among those who liked, and then later unliked his original post.
After she was called out on supporting his seemingly ‘antisemitic’ remarks, Aniston took to her Instagram story to write:
“This really makes me sick,” she wrote in her own message. “I did not ‘like’ this post on purpose or by accident.
“And more importantly, I want to be clear to my friends and anyone hurt by this showing up in their feed — I do NOT support any type of antisemitism. And I truly don’t tolerate HATE of any kind. Period,” she added.
Jamie Foxx (L) and Jennifer Aniston (R) at the Los Angeles premiere of Horrible Bosses 2 on November 20, 2014Getty Images – Getty
What have users said about the situation?
The internet was flooded with differing opinions about Foxx’s original post.
One user defended the actor on X, writing: “Any black person growing up in the south will tell you that Jamie Foxx wasn’t referring to Jewish people.
“‘They killed/lied on/talked about Jesus’ simply means ‘If Jesus can be betrayed, so can you.’ He genuinely meant fake friends/fake people. So quick to reach, it’s ridiculous.”
Another was seemingly confused by the whole situation, writing: “How did Jamie Foxx go from almost dying to being on the verge of getting canceled in less than a week? the internet is a wild place.”
