Celebrities ranging from Meryl Streep and John Legend to Steve Harvey have voiced their opinions about President-elect Donald Trump. Zoe Saldana was the latest to weigh in, and she attributed at least some of Trump’s nomination to Hollywood.
“We got cocky and became arrogant and we also became bullies,” Soldana told French outlet AFP. Before, during, and after his campaign, Trump was accused of bullying Rosie O’Donnell, Megyn Kelly, and others.
“We were trying to single out a man for all these things he was doing wrong... and that created empathy in a big group of people in America that felt bad for him and that are believing in his promises.”
Saldana had already come under fire for using skin-darkening makeup and prosthetics for her portrayal of Nina Simone. Suffice it to say, Twitter was none too pleased with what came across in some circles as a defense of Trump. The Guardians of the Galaxy actress became a trending topic on Twitter, with anti-Trump users swiftly getting in her mentions.
Zoe Saldana, so ur defending Donald Trump now, ur the exact opposite of what Nina Simone represented & this is why no 1 wanted u 2 play her pic.twitter.com/PcWJ3UOiXw
Lmaoo Zoe Saldana said trump is being bullied by Hollywood.. pic.twitter.com/LVpKqeDTsY
Zoe Saldana is the same person who said she couldn't complain about racism in Hollywood because her president is Black. https://t.co/HSeMoqByQ5
Atlanta A&T gotta take away Zoe Saldana's fictional degree. She stay disgracing that prestigious imaginary university. pic.twitter.com/fXbPESACZu
I will never see Zoe Saldana as Black. She didn't even want to claim her Blackness until she got heat for Nina Simone.
Saldana added she would be "learning from [Trump's victory] with a lot of humility" and advocated for education and equal respect, but it seems readers who caught wind of her quotes had heard enough.
