The full iCarly reboot cast was officially revealed on Friday, and instead of celebrating
with fans, the cast is now denouncing the many racist attacks against new cast member
Laci Mosley.
Let’s get into it.
In what was supposed to be an exciting time for the cast of iCarly, who just announced
that the upcoming reboot on Paramount+ will premiere on June 17th, new cast member Laci
Mosely was met with racist attacks from Internet trolls after she was introduced on social
media as a new character.
Laci is set to play the character Harper, who is Carly Shay’s best friend on the show,
which led angered fans to believe she was “replacing” Jennette McCurdy’s character
Sam Puckett, who notably did not return for the reboot.
Once Laci got word of the racist comments, she immediately posted photos of the damaging
slurs and remarks from online trolls in a since-deleted Instagram story, writing QUOTE,
“Get the f*ck out of my comments with this f*cking racist ass bullsh*t.
You will be blocked and you will never see me again honey.”
Interestingly, other Black fans of the show also chimed in on Laci’s casting, many of
which accused the casting directors of the show of PC overcorrecting, considering Carly’s
previous best friend on the show was white.
Laci also took to Twitter to reveal that she’d also learned about racist comments being made
about her on TikTok, writing QUOTE, “My sister telling me that she saw several videos
about me on TikTok being racist as f*ck broke my heart.
Me and my sister are 13 years apart, she’s like my child and her having to see this sh*t
broke me.
I don’t know what’s wrong with you people but you need to seek help.”
She later apologized for cursing in her response, writing, “I was really caught off guard
by the onslaught of racist trolls.Being a Black woman is exhausting.
We all deserve better.”
Honestly, this is so horrible, the fact that Laci, her family and castmates should be celebrating,
and this is what she has to deal with is disgusting.
Despite the onslaught of racial remarks toward Laci, many fans were quick to come to her
defense, including her iCarly castmates.
The official iCarly Instagram account, as well as Paramount+, released joint statements,
which were later reposted by the rest of the cast, which read, “iCarly are proud to be
racially diverse, not only in our crew but in our cast.
We have recently seen reports of racism towards a member of our iCarly cast, and it is not
acceptable!”
The post went on to say, “Please think about your words and take time to understand what
you say can impact other people.
Thank you.”
Paramount+ also posted a statement to their Instagram page expressing how proud they were
to “uphold the values of inclusivity and collaboration.”
Miranda Cosgrove posted this message on her IG story.
It says, “our company is proud to upload the values of inclusivity and collaboration,
where we work to embrace new and diverse voices, act with care and work together.
The upcoming Paramount+ iCarly series is one of many examples of this commitment, and we
support our entire cast and crew and stand against all instances of hate & racism.”
One of the show’s writers, Franchesca Ramsey, also spoke out and urged others to call out
what they see when it comes to racist comments.
She also denied the fact that Laci’s character is replacing Jennette’s, writing, “No
one could replace Jeanette McCurdy or her incredible talent!
But it's both racist as hell & completely unfair to decide that Laci hasn't earned her
role especially since the show isn't even out yet!!”
These racist attacks are far too common and are not ok to be expressed, shared, or reposted
under any circumstances… we, here at Clevver, also urge you to think before you speak or
post anything that could potentially be damaging to another human being.
Laci isn’t the only celebrity who has recently spoken out about race, so click right over
here to see what Leigh-Anne Pinnock had to say in her powerful new documentary.
Then be sure to let me know all your thoughts on this horrible situation Laci and the iCarly
cast are currently navigating.
I’m your host Sussan Mourad, you can find me on TikTok @Sussan_Mourad, bye guys.