How Melissa McCarthy Took a Stand Against a “Toxic” Set That Left Her and the Crew “Weeping”

Sets can be a difficult place for multiple reasons: long hours, small crews, limited budgets, and time constraints can make a day on set hard.

However, there is another factor that we can’t stand to see, and that is when there is a lack of kindness to the cast and crew of production, creating a toxic environment that nobody wants to be a part of.

The Little Mermaid star Halle Bailey recently praised co-star Melissa McCarthy for teaching her how to speak up and say what works for her on set. However, this wasn’t always the case for the actress. Melissa McCarthy revealed in a recent interview with The Observer that she once became sick due to working on a toxic set that left many of the cast and crew “weeping.”

“I did work for someone once who ran such a volatile, hostile set that it made me physically ill,” McCarthy said in the interview. “My eyes were swelling up, I was absorbing all of this nuttiness.”

She continued, “There were people weeping, visibly so upset by this one person. And I think that’s why the manipulation worked, because to get to me, this person would fire people I loved, which kept me quiet. It was very effective. Then one day, I was like, ‘It stops today!’ I just kept saying to them, ‘It stops, it stops.’ And I know now I’ll never keep quiet again.”     

The experience led McCarthyto realize that she can’t remain quiet while absorbing the toxicity of a work environment, as no one should. 

Everyone deserves to be treated with kindness on set. While there will be decisions made that you might not agree with or cost the crew more time to set up, everyone on set must find a middle ground through honesty. A level of truth will create a clear channel of communication that can hopefully end a toxic work environment. 

If you ever find yourself on a set that is mentally or physically pushing you beyond your limits, check in with yourself and find what you need to continue working and communicate this with the production team. Sure, we all want to work, but we should be allowed to work without abuse on set. 

Let us know your thoughts on how someone should stand up for themselves on set in the comments below.

Source: The Observer