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Gillian Anderson defended telling her fans off for sitting in the front row of her West End show.
The actress sparked controversy on Saturday when she was caught on video telling a group of superfans they couldn’t sit in the front row at her “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”
In the video, captured outside the Sohoplace Theatre in London, she told a group of people who were not visible in the clip, “You guys cannot sit in the front row.”
Despite the group telling her they were “sorry” and that they knew, she doubled down, saying, “I don’t care. You cannot sit in the front row. It’s so distracting. You can’t come 20 times and sit in the front row, it’ll drive me mad.”
The “Sex Education” actress, 58, chimed in on the situation on Sunday via X, “Hi everyone, just to say — the video doing the rounds is me talking with women I go back over 20 years with. Please don’t say anything negative to or about them.”
She continued, “We’re thrilled to be doing this show, but for people in the front row, please be aware that in such an intimate venue, we can all see you. Sometimes, it can be a tad distracting! That’s all. All good.”
The video initially garnered mixed reviews, with some social media users agreeing with Anderson and others defending her fans.
“How difficult it must have been for Gillian to perform and stay in character while she is so uncomfortable due to someone’s presence… It’s actively making it worse for the rest of the audience because everyone gets a poor show due to one person’s behavior,” one wrote via X, defending the actress.
“The fact that she had to say that and they still don’t take her discomfort seriously is so weird 😵💫😵💫😵💫 like why would they as a fan want to make their fave uncomfortable like this,” another added.
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A third wrote, “People need to realize that even long-time fans aren’t exempt from basic respect, and ruining the experience for others is selfish behavior. set those boundaries! can’t wait for showtime!”
However, another user argued, “Nah this is weird on Gillian’s part. They’re allowed to want to see her in a play & sit where they want.”
A second echoed a similar stance, “I do not really know who Gillian Anderson is, but i am surprised so many people are defending her for coming down on frequent theatergoers.”
Anderson stars in the West End production alongside Billy Crudup. The show opened Sept. 21 and runs through Dec. 19.
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