Tracee Ellis Ross bluntly called out Jay Leno and his “Tonight Show” for their decision to not call her or her “Girlfriends” co-star to the talk show.
Ross also noted that the show went for other lesser-known celebrities from shows that had lower viewership.
Tracee says Jay Leno’s ‘Tonight Show’ declined to book her during the successful run of ‘Girlfriends’
According to Page Six, Ross has alleged that Leno had not called her and co-stars Golden Brooks, Persia White, and Jill Marie Jones. The actress noted that though the show was highly popular, the “Girlfriends” group didn’t get called.
In an interview on Trevor Noah’s “What Now?” podcast, the actress claimed that the industry did not give them the recognition they deserved. The “Black-ist” star said, “No ‘Tonight Show,’ no David Letterman, no Emmys. Had never been to the Emmys.” She added, “As a matter of fact, I have a story. It was Jay Leno. And I had ‘Girlfriends,’ and the comment was, ‘We love Tracee. Call us when she gets something,’” she recalled.
The actress said that she was puzzled. ‘Get what? What else do you have to get?’ I don’t know. And it just was… ‘We love her,’ but it was not considered,” she recalled. She also noted that other less-popular shows got featured, citing “Monk”. “I remember, specifically, the show ‘Monk.’ Do you remember that show with Tony Shalhoub? That show had a quarter of our viewership. A quarter of our viewership,” the actress exclaimed.
Frustrated with not finding valid reasons for the cast’s dismissal, the actress questioned what exactly Leno weighed his decision on: “And the only thing you can boil it down to, you’re like, ‘Is it just racism?’ I’m not sure how to — how do you categorize it? I don’t know what it is.”
The Mara Brock Akil-created “Girlfriends” followed a group of Black female friends as they navigated marriage, friendship, and dating. The show ran for eight seasons from 2000 to 2008.
It got 29 NAACP Image Award nominations and one Emmy recognition for outstanding cinematography for a multi-camera series.
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