Actress Ayo Edebiri has revealed she received death threats and was subjected to racial slurs after Elon Musk gave oxygen to a rumor erroneously claiming she was being considered as a replacement for Johnny Depp in a Pirates of the Caribbean sequel.
On Tuesday, Edebiri – who received a Golden Globe for her role in The Bear – slammed Musk, 53, for re-tweeting an inaccurate report that led to her being targeted by trolls.
‘Disney sucks,’ the controversial businessman turned political figure, who currently has over 216 million X followers, wrote in response to the article.
The post generated loads of engagement ever since Musk first shared it back in February 2024, garnering over 16,000 comments, 28,000 re-shares and 22 million eyeballs on it.
Edebiri, 29, said of the incident on her Instagram Stories: ‘Just remembering when I got some of the most insane death threats and racial slurs of my life (idk if it’s the #1 moment, but for sure top 3) for a fake reboot of a movie I had never even heard of because of this man LMAO so not only is he double s** h**ling fascist, he’s an idiot (smiling hearts emoji). but anyway.’
She added at the bottom: ‘Life is, of course, a gift,’ along with a hearts-hand emoji.
Actress Ayo Edebiri has revealed she received death threats and was subjected to racial slurs after Elon Musk gave life to a rumor erroneously claiming she was being considered as a replacement for Johnny Depp in a Pirates of the Caribbean sequel; pictured last month
Musk tweeted the erroneous rumor last year; pictured last month
While the original tweet that Musk re-posted has been taken down, Musk’s message accompanying the tweet remains.
The account holder behind the original tweet, Unlimited_L, defended the post after being called out by Ayo and claimed it was deleted on accident.
‘These people are completely unhinged. Ayo Edebiri waited over a year to address rumors and credible reports circulating in Hollywood from trustworthy sources,’ he claimed. ‘And, of course, she attacks Elon Musk. By the way, this post was deleted by mistake after I decided to clean up my timeline and present a more professional image.’
Edebiri is currently enjoying massive success in Hollywood, particularly in light of her role in the smash Hulu series The Bear.
She has been playing Sydney Adamu opposite Jeremy Allen White since 2022 and has garnered critical acclaim for her role.
Edebiri has won a Critics Choice Award, a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild Award and more for the role.
She made her directorial debut on the show, helming the season six episode entitled Napkins.
Ayo told Deadline that she shed tears when she first read the script.
The Bottoms actress called out Musk on her Instagram Stories on Tuesday
Ayo stars in the hit Hulu series The Bear
‘It was written very beautifully,’ Ayo said. ‘I was just so moved by it and really really touched that Chris [Storer] had me in mind to direct it.’
‘I could see it as soon as I read it,’ Ayo added.
White also praised Edebiri as a director.
He told Variety last year: ‘It was the best. I wasn’t acting in that first day of hers, I was on set just like hanging out… I can say she did a beautiful job.
Ayo is an accomplished star who has garnered critical acclaim for her work
‘She’s a beautiful actress and a very intuitive actress. And I think she’s a very beautiful and intuitive director as well,’ he added.
Edebiri’s other work includes Inside Out 2, Bottoms, Black Mirror, Abbott Elementary, and more.
She’s next up slated to return to season four of The Bear, in addition to several other projects.
