Two years ago, Lea Michele seemed almost totally unemployed.
The “Glee” star was “canceled” in June 2020 after she tweeted in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and former co-star Samantha Ware, a black woman, replied that Michele had been a bully on set. Ware wrote on Twitter in all caps: “I think you told everyone that if you had the chance,
‘s – – you in my wig!’ ”
Other “Glee” Actors heaped on accusations of cruelty, prompting Michele to apologize on Instagram for her mean girl behavior. But the damage was done. Like many canceled celebrities, she went to a metaphorical Siberia. . . never be seen again. . .
Until this September, that is, when the 35-year-old “Spring Awakening” actress will take on the starring role of Fanny Brice in the Broadway revival of “Funny Girl.”
One Oscar voter said fans are ready to forgive, forget and enjoy the show. “Everybody knows deep down that a lot of their favorite stars over the years were probably some — — holes, so it seems like something people can top for the show.”
Does that mean The Great Un-Canceling is upon us?
Hollywood and Broadway sources told The Post that bigwigs are fighting behind the scenes to win back stars with messy pasts who had been sent to the glamorous glue factory. Who is redeemable? Who does not? Has enough time passed since the news? Does the paying public already care?
“We are certainly seeing minor behavior culprits starting to come out of hibernation,” an industry source said of the changing landscape. “They are unglued once again. But will they be able to fly again? We will see.”
And the trend stretches from coast to coast.
This month, the Hollywood Reporter revealed that James Franco, who was accused by five women of sexual misconduct in 2018 at the height of the #MeToo movement, also to act again in a new movie called “I, You”.
When his comeback was announced, the reaction was. . . almost inexistent.
A couple of years ago, that relative silence would have been shocking. The man was an outcast. In a 2019 lawsuit, two of Franco’s acting students alleged that he “tried to create a conduit of young women who were subjected to his personal and professional sexual exploitation in the name of education.” Franco, now 44 years old, settled with them for $2.2 millionand was never charged with any crime.
Countless stories and columns were written about the scandal, and it features prominently in the new documentary about the dark side of Hollywood”Body parts.” Everyone, and I mean everyone, dismissed Franco as donezo, but like it or not, he’s back.
Something like.
A Hollywood honcho says Franco won’t return to his previous heights of appearing in movies like “Spider-Man” or “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.” “Those people are getting horrible jobs,” they said. “Nothing like what they had at all.”
Of Michele, a Broadway source said that prior to her controversy, the actress would never have been willing to come in second. Feldstein beaniewho originated the role of Fanny in the revival.
“Lea would have expected to have opened ‘Funny Girl,'” they said, “and probably should have.”
Still, these diminished stars are no longer hidden. And nobody seems to care. The public’s appetite for cancellation has faded thanks to COVID-19, crime, inflation, and the million other storms we’re dealing with at once. The bar for exile has been raised. Abruptly.
Some non-negotiable crimes are obvious: sexual crimes and harassment, for example, cannot be tolerated.
Actor Kevin Spacey is the highest-profile current example. The Oscar winner will go on trial for sexual assault in the UK next year (pleaded not guilty) and, unless his name is cleared, he remains a drag on film studios. Yes, Spacey has a low-budget Italian movie on the way, co-starring Faye Dunaway, who, as my colleague Michael Riedel reported, has had its share of behind-the-scenes crises. But is there a new “House of Cards” in the cards? I do not think so.
Louis CK, meanwhile, was quickly canceled despite creepily masturbating in front of uninterested female employees. His second chance is undeserved. You have to make money, but Louis should sell timeshares in the Cayman Islands to Armie Hammer, another one who doesn’t deserve a second chance.
However, the lapses in judgment should get a second look.
Matt Damon was criticized last year for idiotically revealing during an interview that he didn’t know “f – – – – t” was a gay slur, and admit he used it at family dinner. The stupid star apologized and narrowly avoided cancellation. Good. It’s not a crime to be a jerk.
And, in February, when Whoopi Goldberg wrongly claimed on “The View” that the Holocaust “wasn’t about race,” she was suspended — not fired. That was the right decision. She apologized and learned from her mistake.
Attitude problems shouldn’t be grounds for expulsion from the planet either.
Broadway sources say Michele is not a joy to work with, but I say if he sells tickets, he sells tickets. Chrissy Teigen sent a message to teen stars to “kill themselves,” and she’s still around and getting kind letters. about his year of sobriety. I say if you sell cookbooks, you sell cookbooks.
“The dust is settling and a new form of order is emerging,” an industry source added. “And with him, part of the talent.”