A week ago, Rose McGowan tweeted a gross wardrobe note for an Adam Sandler movie. The note provided instructions to wear a tight tank top and show cleave (“push up bras encouraged“). Rose gave a follow-up statement that said, “It’s embarrassing to be part of [Hollywood] sometimes.” Rose said she “didn’t take a vow of silence when I joined the industry” and compared Hollywood to the Mafia. She also spoke with Entertainment Weekly about how “offended” she was by the wardrobe note.
There are some new developments. Yesterday, Rose tweeted a claim that she’d been “fired by my wussy acting agent” for talking smack.
My initial reaction was to believe Rose had been dropped because she had the guts to talk about Sandler’s low-hanging fruit. Then the agency spoke with Variety to clarify how Rose’s agent, Sheila Wenzel, left the agency earlier this week. The implicaton was that Rose was let go because her agent left, not because of the Sandler stuff. But a different source says “the wheels were already in motion to drop McGowan in light of her comments about the audition.” Variety also spoke with Sandler’s camp, who says he didn’t know anything about the “inappropriate” wardrobe note.
Rose took the high road and tweeted a nice note about her former agent. It sure sounds like she got fired for the Sandler stuff, right?
Sheila Wenzel is a wonderful agent that ceased working with Innovative before my firing. She's a good, strong woman I'm proud to know.
— rose mcgowan (@rosemcgowan) June 25, 2015
Jessica Chastain supports Rose and says the incident reflects Hollywood’s “misogyny.”
As do I. Her treatment confirms the misogyny underpinning the industry. She should be celebrated for speaking out.👏 https://t.co/yUyO0LXkFd
— Jessica Chastain (@jes_chastain) June 25, 2015
Photos courtesy of WENN
Good for her for speaking out BUT this is the industry she chose to work in and continues to choose to work in. She’s at the mercy of these jerks and this type of backlash was to be expected.
I hear you, but maybe we shouldn’t just accept the way it is. If people continue to draw attention to it, maybe things will improve?
so we should play the “that’s teh way it is, sucks doesn’t it” card? we should do nothing to call out injustice and try to fix it? come on. if we did that, we’d still have actual slavery and women still wouldn’t have the vote.
Good for Rose and kudos to Jessica, too.
I once did some work for an arts non-profit. The place was/is thick with Republican, white, anti-gay bro-style misogyny, and with blatant mistreatment of staff affecting both genders and especially the youngest workers, by these sort of entitled, out-of-control people in power. Not particularly bright or skilled management, you understand. Just the sort that had the knife, as my great-grandmother from France would have said. Nepotism and people who had “failed up” or been fired from other jobs in the city and had a pal wangle them a top spot in this organization. The place rife with financial shenanigans, and disregard for legal rules of being a non-profit too. And it was joked about in front of me and our team; I think they somehow in their twisted dumb way were trying to impress us with their savage power or something. Disgusting. (We dumped them fyi.)
They even wrote terrible, made-up things in people’s reviews, especially about the young, scared workers, literally saying “this way they wouldn’t have to give raises, ha .” And they sat there making stuff up to write, like it was a drunk frat party. A few of us in the room looked at each other like, Whhhhhaaaaat?
The bros then awarded themselves staggering bonuses. A non-profit, known in the arts. Someone on staff eventually pointed this stuff out, and was told with a sneer that that is “just how it is, that’s how it’s done here, if you don’t like it, get out.” That person got out, followed by others. I hear traffic and profits are down.
Maybe the bros that run Hollywood are due for a truth session too, and it seems like fewer and fewer of them have creative chops or brains anyway, the same sort of nepotism pals-only club with drunk frat bro rules. Will two actresses change things? No. But as each speaks up, as the Amy Poehlers and Tina Feys etc speak up, maybe attention is drawn and tiny shifts take place in the broke-down Hollywood palace.
Yea accepting the status quo is how slavery and the Nazis came into power. Because no one wanted to speak up for others.
This type of misogyny is why idiots like David O Russell still have major influence in Hollywood even though it’s an open secret how awful he is. Because women like Amy Adams get terrorized on set but are forced to go back and play “everything is happy I still love him as a mentor” unless they want to be ruined. It’s why casting couches still exist. It’s sick and not just exclusive to Hollywood (look at the STEM field if you want more misogyny) although it’s pretty horrific in the industry.
Alex — I couldn’t agree with you more –> “Yea accepting the status quo is how slavery and the Nazis came into power. Because no one wanted to speak up for others.”
It’s accepting the thin edge of the wedge of mistreatment that leads to worse behavior and more condoned abuses.
Re STEM industry misogyny — I’ve heard about this from friends in SF, too. It’s amazing that we’re in 2015 and still dealing with this sort of thing out of fear for livelihoods. It’s as if the new PC thing is “keep your mouth shut, notice nothing, say nothing, don’t be negative, be polite, it’s just happening to two or three people” — and that is why I agree with your comment, too.
Thanks, Liberty.
You just aptly summarized many of the work environments I’ve been involved in, but aren’t an arts non-profit. SAME/same. We are employee twinsies!
cheryl, we deserve a badge of honor, or at least a few curing cocktails, eh?!?!
Yeah sad to say, I’ve seen this sort of thing at a couple of regular businesses too (big, internationally known). But in those cases, it was luckily small-scale, confined to parts of divisions, and the people causing it were flipped to the curb. In one co, the women complained in a very vocal, clear, papered-up middle-manaegment way, and stuff was altered fast.
I guess it astonished me that in the arts, in a non-profit, this attitude was sooooooo strong and untouchable. No one wants to point the laser beam of truth at non-profits in the arts, I guess. A friend is going thru similar, in another well-known arts org out east, and we swear we’ll write a book!
We might expect this kind of behavior from treatment powers that be, but that doesn’t make it right or acceptable.
Rose McGowan’s righteous indignation is hilarious. This is the woman who chose to wear a beaded drape and a thong during an event when she was engaged to Marilyn Manson. That sartorial choice had her essentially naked. Then there’s the over the top sexualization of teenage girls in the movie Jawbreaker. Oh, and let’s not forget the Grindhouse role. Ms. McGowan has actively participated in the Hollywood sexism game. It seems suspicious that now that she isn’t the ingenue that she is crying foul. Hollywood sexism absolutely exists but she isn’t the feminist banner bearer.
While true, she has said that the promotion of Grindhouse is what opened her eyes to the sexism and exploitation of the industry. She is allowed to change her mind.
That’s my only issue with Rose, is she’s speaking out NOW as a 40something or is she late 30’s? …anyway, she is speaking out NOW as the sex-kitten roles she once played are going to dry up. Why didn’t she speak out in her twenties?
It’s not really hilarious at all. She went along to get along when she was younger & completely powerless. She was exploited & didn’t know any better. Now she’s older & she’s found more of a voice for herself. Are there things that you didn’t know when you were in your 20s?
Evil flourishes when good people do nothing.
These words have been true since the dawn of humanity.
Every single time. On a large scale like slavery and Nazism, and on a small scale like OJ Simpson and Nicole Brown Simpson or even Josh Duggar and his siblings.
Every single time some catastrophe happens where the neighbours or friends and relatives thought something was up, and looked the other way and or didn’t speak up.
Conversely, it takes one person to make a difference – see Ghandi, Rosa Parks, Aung Su Kyui, Malala……
Evil Oscar Pistorius, …poor Reeva Stemkamp.
And of course no repercussions for Adam Sandler for leaving such notes on the first place
Of course.
It wasn’t actually Adam Sandler, who requested that the woman auditioning dress in that particular manner. It was the casting agency. Although, Adam Sandler should publicly state, that he will no longer be working with that agency on any future projects.
Oh but he didn’t know! This is such a d*ck move. He’s the boss, he sets the tone so even if he didn’t know about this particular note, he’s sure as hell responsible for hiring the type of people who would give such a note. I don’t know if this saying translates but in German we say “The fish starts rotting from the head.”
Yes, to this. If Adam Sandler didn’t know about this, and doesn’t condone it, has he fired the person who did send out this note and makes such sexist demands of people Sandler wants to work with?
Of course he knew its all accepted in this industry. so glad she’s calling all the f**ers out!
Is he the boss on this one? it’s likely since he generally produces his own films, but I don’t know for sure. Either way, I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if he was perfectly fine with it, and doesn’t care.
I think there should be a boycott on all Adam Sandler movies – people shouldn’t see anything that guy is in.
But that’s just common sense, anyway.
On another note, …it’s the role…the character is a tarty type of character ….he wasn’t aiming this at Rose personally.
I can see Roses point that she didn’t want to do it, but this was not personally aimed at her.
I just wonder why she went off on Adam Sandler now? Rose has been playing characters which use their sex and dress in a way that sexualise since the beginning of her career. Why NOW?
Well done for not backing down Rose.
It’s about time women stood up for themselves in Hollywood and speak more about the double standards etc.
Speak about as these things happen and not something they conveniently talk about when they have a movie to promote.
agreed, or giving some “ooh sorry words taken out of context / twitter was hacked / i didn’t mean it” bs either. glad she stuck her guns!
I still don’t get the hoopla. It sounds to me that her agent was giving her directions on how to dress for a particular part and that the part was to be some pop tart in a Sandler movie. No? If that’s the case, I don’t see what’s wrong with requesting the talent to be dressed like a pop-tart. If the role was a scientist, wouldn’t an agent request the talent to look studious? I’m assuming that actors auditioning for Magic Mike had to come in looking they could be an exotic dancer.
I have mixed thoughts about it all.
it’s a movie, an Adam Sandler movie. what did she expect?
if someone auditioning for magic mike was told to wear a g string thingie so they could see what he looked like dancing in it, is the wrong? would you hire someone without checking their um “credentials” in any job?
unfortunately, the part was for a poptart. she didn’t want to do it, and good for her, I can’t blame her.
she spoke up, and that is a good thing. however, she seemed to chose an issue where she didn’t really have a leg to stand on- she had choices here, not to audition, to say no. she was auditioning for a part to play a poptart. if it wasn’t that kind of part, in that kind of movie, THEn she is making a valid point.
totally agree with you
@originalkay That’s exactly my point. You said it better than I did.
@carol and original kay: so you’re saying that the onus is on the actresses not to audition for roles that ask for them to show up all sexy regardless of the role – and not placing any responsibility on the people in charge who are doing the asking? That’s messed up.
@carol — I think she is saying if you choose to audition for a poptart role in an Adam Sandler movie don’t be surprised if it requires you to look an act like a poptart. The bigger issue of the ridiculous “May-December” pairings that only go one gender direction or the pay discrepancies are valid, but her particular issue is not a good one to bolster the argument.
For the record, do I think Hollywood execs (male and female) are misogynistic? Oh yeah! Do I think the person who wrote this description could have done it with more skill? Yes. But asking the actress to dress the part in the audition doesn’t equate to misogyny just because the role in and of itself is for a character who wears a push-up bra.
I do think the onus is on female actors to take a unified stand and stop pandering to perverted, salacious directors and producers who persistently portray sexuality with women as commodities as viewed through the male lens.
Bridget, I suggest you read my comments again.
Please quote back to me, from my post, where I suggested that ” so you’re saying that the onus is on the actresses not to audition for roles that ask for them to show up all sexy regardless of the role “.
and again, if one of the makes in magic mike was told to show up in a g string and dance, would that be wrong? it’s the part she was intending to audition for. was the role she was auditioning for a scientist? or a teacher? or the president?
no. it was for a poptart, in a film with poptarts, starring a man who always features poptarts in his films. go figure they’d want to see if she could fit the role of a poptart.
Agreed!!!
They way to dress was from the studio not from Rose’s agent.
The note on dress didn’t come from the agent, it came from the movie production. Rose is implying that her agent fired her for revealing what goes on behind closed doors, not playing by the rules, and not keeping her mouth shut.
and then she back tracked and said what a wonder person her agent was.
zero credibility?
@Original Kay, her credibility is fine and anyone who thinks she was let go because her agent left is drinking the Kool-aid. This woman was one of her agents ( agencies have teams working on an actor unless they are particularly small or boutique.) Her other agent was named Steve Muller. He’s still there so….?
are leaks about scripts and script notes frowned upon?
Is it common for notes, scripts, etc, of this nature to be leaked?
I think, in business, it is against the rules to leak info?
I mean, if she wants to be a whistleblower, ok. blow away. is this really the best example of sexism in Hollywood, however?
original kay: it’s not against the rules, but this kind of thing is seriously frowned upon because it makes Sandler look like an a-hole.
Carol, that’s how women are expected to dress for every audition, be it for party girl or astrophysicist. It doesn’t matter what part you want to play, you have to come in looking hot. If you have a moment, I’d suggest reading The Hollywood Reporter’s television comedy roundtable, the actresses share some of their experiences.
> Rose is implying that her agent fired her for revealing what goes on behind closed doors, not playing by the rules, and not keeping her mouth shut.
it is because of what the audiences want to see. Are we barking at a wrong tree here? The issue is not Hollywood, the issue is the viewers who want to see only beautiful people on the screen, especially in the US.
@EN
It think it’s a bit of a chicken and egg problem.
Producers always say they only shoot what the audience wants to see, but how do they know if the audience won’t like something else if they never get the chance to try it? Or worse, try to explain away the success of every movie that doesn’t fit their world view.
It’s always said that action movies with a prominent female character won’t sell, but the newest Mad Max Movie got stellar reviews from everybody but some Men’s Rights activists and was/is a financial success.
It think the audience can be a part of the problem but that doesn’t mean the people behind the movies are of the hook
My issue with Rose is that she was perfectly willing to play the Hollywood tarty roles in her twenties….if she had refused these roles in her twenties, I’d actually think more of Rose’s sudden protest.
That’s not really true. I have a couple of friends who are actresses and they aren’t asked to dress like a tart for just any roles. They dress to coincide with a character’s description. I absolutely do believe there is sexism in Hollywood but Rose’s situation is just not a good example of it.
i was interested what would become of this story but then i read her talking like this
“You don’t understand my life, first of all. I spent the last seven years dismantling…I have a very big life beyond what people see on the outside, including you. And that’s understandable because I never told anybody anything. I’m not one of those people that goes on TV and gives everybody updates on my current movements. I’m a businesswoman, I own a lot of businesses, a lot of real estate, I’m kind of a baller in many other worlds. This one I came back to a year and a half ago, like, “Oh wait, I’m an artist. Hey, OK, I got this.” ”
and im ok with not liking her.
I read that article, too, Mila. Totally sanctimonious. And calling yourself a “baller”? Seriously? Yeah . . . no.
that black and white dress is amazing. And yes, maybe her agent left, but I totally believe that Rose got punished. I still think the worst punishment she could get is being in an Adam Sandler movie. He is such a hack.
Both things are possible. Her long-time agent left and she was passed over to someone else at Innovative, who dropped her after the Sandler thing.
I have a soft spot for her because she played Paige on charmed! Haha that being said I like her and I’m glad she put Adam Sandler on blast.
Loved Charmed!!!
Aren’t agents usually the conduit for scripts to go to the artist? It would also make sense that her agent read the script and possibly the note before sending it to her client.
Apparently, it was a different agent. It’s not surprising they would drop her since she doesn’t seem to act much anymore. She seems to want to direct.
Do men get “casting letter’s as well?
“We’re looking for a slobby beer belly, baggy dirty sport shorts, t-shirts that look like they were sold for five dollars in a highway gas stop, skip the personal grooming and hey, dude, skip the shower too! Have balls? Let ’em swing free! In this movie, you’re guaranteed to win the super model no matter what!”
You mean, like that? 🙂
LOL! I guess, I’m learning about the movie industry reading these sites, so I wondered if they had those specifics for everyone.
Casting notes are quite normal with scripts or auditions. What Rose got as far as notes, was not unusual in Hollywood auditions.
As far as casting notes, or audition notes , I’ve seen way worse.
What someone will do soon is leak the script from her film ” Jaw Breaker” and the ” notes” she got and how she didn’t balk.
A woman who built her entire “career” on being treated like a piece of meat – public nudity, erotic charged roles, affairs with married producers and directors – is shocked, SHOCKED! when she is treated like a disposable piece of meat. Well…
None of those actions give anyone agency over her body. I completely respect her for calling the bastards out.
Calling out the bastards for what? Giving her wardrobe notes for a role of a slutty girl in a dumb Sandler movie? Was the role she was auditioning for a mother or a suburban wife? If it was, I can see her point otherwise it makes no sense.
Carol: what if it wasn’t for a “slutty girl”? Because considering what Sandler’s movies are typically like, and of course Rose’s age, it’s likely she was auditioning to play the mom/wife role.
The way misogyny is just accepted as normal in this society is so sad.
I just get the feeling there is a missing part to this story.
Why did she suddenly get so incensed when Rose has mostly played this type of role.
The casting people may have sent it to her because she has usually played these tarty types. They were basically typecasting her from roles she previously did. IMO
I want someone to touch Jessica Chastain.. I dare them.. LOL
mmmm Jessica Chastain. I hope the rumors of her liking girls are too. I’d ditch guys for life if I’d have a chance.
true* not too
Idk how to feel about this. Earlier this week she had an interview with gawker which she claimed she didn’t have an agent, then she claims her agent fired her, now she says her agent was great…. Also I know for a fact there’s sexism in Hollywood but I can’t take a casting note on how to dress seriously. I’ve always assumed for the audition they want you to channel the character anyway.
yeah she clearly lies and amplifies some things in her story. I liked her so much in Charmed but she comes across as polemic and not really a credible person. Her rants on social media make her look crazy.
Maybe she is just extreme unhappy with her career…i mean if the best you can get is the role of some stripper or whatever in a Sandler movie then you definitely know your acting career is dead. The last time she got that much attention was when she banged married Robert Rodriguez.
I think the timeline is 1) Sheila Wenzel was Rose McGowan’s agent at Innovative Agency; 2) Wenzel left or was fired from Innovative; 3) McGowan now had an agency (Innovative) but not an official agent; 4) McGowan tweeted about the Sandler casting call; 5) McGowan trash talked agents to Gawker; 6) someone at Innovative then told McGowan the agency will no longer represent her, either because of her tweets, her Gawker interview, or both.
I’m surprised she still had such big agencies.
There’s an interesting story by Michael K that says her timeline doesn’t pan out, and that Rose was most likely dropped by her agent before her Sandler comment.
The problem with the story by Michael K is that he assumes that Sheila Wenzel was the agent that dropped her. That does not appear to be the case.
Adam Sandlers movies are terrible. Why is he so powerful? It’s like when Amy Pascal was “moved” for the Sony leaks and there were no repercussions for any if the men involved. The industry is sexist and racist andit can’t be justified as “just business.”
It needs to change and I hope people continue to speak out fearlessly against it.
$$$$$$&$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
That’s a shitty looking black drape with a gold bra she’s wearing.
Sheila Wenzel and Steve Muller were Rose’s two agents. After Rose was fired, her female agent Sheila was fired…..but Steve Muller was not, and remains at the agency. Draw your own conclusions.
So, she decided to fight inequality in Hollywood by sending inappropriate note in return? If you want to be taken seriously, don’t do it. You only hurt your cause.
Rose is probably right that she doesn’t need an agent, but what she really doesn’t need is to burn bridges.
She was very unwise in naming names. Actually posting that kind of thing publicly was rash and unprofessional. If she wanted to make the point, she could’ve done so without naming names or worded it in a more general way. The post about the agency was similarly unwise, and may get her blacklisted. The fact that she had to backtrack and do damage control for her former agent was very indicative of the clusterf*ck she managed to create for herself.