The media mogul opened up for 'ELLE's 2022 Women in Hollywood issue.
Issa Rae has always been very candid about her views on Hollywood's machinations, and in a new interview with ELLE, the self-proclaimed "media mogul" got very frank about why she believes the entertainment industry is "regressing."
When asked what she feels has changed about Hollywood in a post-#MeToo era, the Rap Sh!t series creator answered that it was "sadly, not much."
"There are just too many enablers for there to be real change," the Insecure creator and alum adds, stating that real change will only come when people are actually "held accountable" with "legitimate consequences."
Rae, who once called the music business "probably the worst industry I’ve ever come across," went on to declare that Hollywood rarely doles out suitable consequences for its offenders because "money will always reign supreme."
"That’s something that, even by working in this industry, we’re enabling. So it’s hard," she tells the outlet. "What I have realized is that I can control my own environment and who I work with. I can hold people accountable within my world and my bubble. I don’t have to work for everybody. All money isn’t good money. All people aren’t good people…"
So what would be Rae's solution to making concrete changes in the industry? "It starts with a backbone," the writer/producer says, adding that listening to the oft-repeated mantra "Listen to women," should be paramount.
A "clear example" of Rae's grievance would be the case of Ezra Miller, star of Warner Bros. upcoming film The Flash, and alleged child groomer.
Miller has been making headlines since a series of disturbing public allegations were mounted against them in recent months. In June, they were captured on video in Iceland, where Miller was seen yelling at a woman outside a bar, "Do you wanna fight? Is that the deal?" The woman responded by putting her arms up as Miller approached her and appeared to grab her by the neck. Miller then appeared to push the woman to the ground while holding on to her shoulder and neck. No charges were filed.
A report from Variety regarding that incident included an interview with the alleged victim, alongside an additional interview with another woman, named Nadia, who detailed a separate altercation she claimed to have had with Miller at her home in Berlin this past February. She filed a police report and said she has since blocked the actor's number and has not had contact since that night.
Those reports came in the wake of a slew of legal troubles and public allegations against Miller, including multiple arrests in Hawaii, as well as allegations that Miller has participated in grooming multiple girls as young as 12.
Additionally, a June Rolling Stone expose alleged that Miller had also been housing a woman and her children on a farm in Vermont in shockingly unsafe living conditions -- including loaded guns lying around the house, accessible by the children.
In August, Miller's representative revealed that the actor is seeking treatment for "complex mental health issues" in a statement issued to Variety.
"Having recently gone through a time of intense crisis, I now understand that I am suffering complex mental health issues and have begun ongoing treatment," the actor said in the statement.
They continued, "I want to apologize to everyone that I have alarmed and upset with my past behavior. I am committed to doing the necessary work to get back to a healthy, safe and productive stage in my life."
The statement was the first time that the Flash star publicly commented on the mounting allegations leveled against them.
A source close to the studio told Variety that Warner Bros. supports Miller's decision to seek professional help and the actor reportedly recently filmed reshoots for The Flash, despite speculations that they would be recast or that the film could be shelved.
During a recent earnings call, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav referred to the movie as "one of the great DC films coming up."
The actor's behavior and subsequent acceptance from Warner Bros., Rae declared, is "a microcosm of Hollywood."
"There's this person who's a repeat offender, who's been behaving atrociously, and as opposed to shutting them down and shutting the production down, there's an effort to save the movie and them," she says. "That is a clear example of the lengths that Hollywood will go to to save itself and to protect offenders."
"So, don't do that, and women may be able to thrive. They won't have to live in fear of keeping silent because it'll ruin their careers," Rae adds. "It's just a constant pattern of abuse that'll only persist if Hollywood continues to insist on being this way."
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