American actress Mo’nique has reignited her feud with talk show host Oprah Winfrey following a longstanding fight that has been ongoing for several years.
In a heated open letter pointed to Instagram, Mo’Nique criticised Oprah for her 2017 comments about American former film producer, Harvey Weinstein and the alleged “disparity” in the way she has treated black men accused of similar crimes.
The Precious actress shared a picture of herself with Oprah on Instagram, captioning it with a long open letter that she felt “compelled to write.”
She then referenced a 2017 CBS interview that Oprah sat down for, in which her connection to Harvey Weinstein was touched upon. She continued, “You did an interview on the CBS Morning Show and were asked about Harvey Weinstein by Norah O’Donnell, and you said as it pertained to him that you ‘always try to look at the Rainbow in the clouds, whatever is the ‘silver lining’. You also said ‘if we make this all about Harvey Weinstein then we have lost the moment’.”
During the interview Oprah Winfrey called the #MeToo movement, which was kickstarted by sexual assault allegations against Weinstein, a “watershed moment.” (Weinstein has since denied allegations of non-consensual sex.)
Recounting how the billionaire talk show host said she tries to find the “silver lining” in every situation when asked to comment on the sexual harassment allegation against Harvey Weinstein, Mo’Nique stated that Oprah is ”hypocritical” for her involvement in a #MeToo documentary on Russell Simmons and Michael Jackson.
She also accused the media mogul of making life harder for her after their first meeting when she was just 16.
Mo’Nique wrote;
Dear @oprah,
I felt compelled to write you this open letter after observing the disparity in the way that you seem to treat people, who were accused of the same allegations. You did an interview on the CBS Morning Show and were asked about Harvey Weinstein by Norah O’Donnell, and you said as it pertained to him that you “always try to look at the Rainbow in the clouds, whatever is the “silver lining”.
You also said “if we make this all about Harvey Weinstein then we have lost the moment”. When you either are, or were going to be a part of documentary on Michael Jackson, and Russell Simmons, how is that not making it all about them? Interestingly, Brother M.J. was acquitted, and deceased, so how is he not off limits? Russell and Harvey are accused of the same thing so in fairness how do you not “support” the accusers of both as you said you did with R.S. or you look for the silver lining for both like you said you did for H.W.?
The only difference between the two is there skin color and doesn’t H.W. have way more accusers? My personal experience with you is you’ve watched me as a black women be accused of being difficult for not promoting “Precious” internationally for Lions Gate, at Lions Gate, Tyler Perry and your request, despite the fact my deal was with Lee Daniels Entertainment.
And, how are you for black women when you hear Tyler on audio saying I was right and he was going to speak up but you or him still haven’t said a word? When I was sixteen and I meet you at your local show in Baltimore, I told you I wanted to be just like you when I grew up. You responded, “ you have to work really really hard
My sixteen year old self didn’t know that you in your silence in the face of wrongdoing, would make my life “harder”. Lastly, please consider standing by the people who are right and not just the “right people.”
Love you to life,
Mo’Nique
Like many feuding celebrities, Mo’Nique and Oprah were once good friends. As disclosed in the letter, a large part of her feud with Oprah started In 2009, when Mo’Nique starred in Precious, a role which got her an Academy Award. Oprah served as executive producer on the project, alongside fellow EP Tyler Perry and director Lee Daniels who Mo’Nique has also lashed out against. According to the Guardian, Mo’Nique ‘refused to travel to the Cannes film festival to promote Precious’ ahead of the awards season and claimed via TheWrap that the movie studio said it couldn’t pay her overtime for her work campaigning for the film.
In an interview with Periscope, Mo’Nique also accused Oprah of hosting a talk show which her mother she is in bad terms with appeared on with one Gerald who allegedly sexually abused her.
The Oscar winner went on to say that she didn’t fully stick up for herself the next time she spoke to Oprah about the incident, because she was worried about offending one of the biggest celebrities in the world. But, she told herself that she would be honest the next time she saw Oprah who claimed she didn’t know that her parents would go to the show taping.
Mo’Nique said that she confronted Oprah at a party for then-Oscar nominee Lupita Nyong’o in 2013. Oprah reportedly apologized at the party but Mo’Nique believed that it wasn’t sincere. She has also called out Tyler Perry and Lee Daniels, noting that the pair along with Oprah had her blacklisted in Hollywood following her Academy Award win.
Oprah on the other hand, has been facing heavy backlash over her After Neverland special with Michael Jackson’s Leaving Neverland accusers. Then, most recently, her inclusion with the Russell Simmons documentary where a number of women who accused the Def Jam mogul of sexual assault and/or misconduct was called into question.
In December, 2019, rapper 50 Cent accused Oprah Winfrey of criticizing only black male stars at the centre of sexual assault allegations while remaining silent on predators who are white, following the report that Winfrey is set to produce a documentary about the sexual assault allegations against Russell Simmons. The news caused 50 Cent to question her silence on allegations brought against white men.
However, Oprah Winfrey recently shared that she was removing herself from the Russell Simmons documentary, not because of the pressure she says Simmons put on her, but because she didn’t agree with the creative direction of the documentary. According to her, the disagreement with the filmmakers caused her to split from the production.