Veteran actor Anthony Anderson addressed a controversy stemming from a clip of when he hosted a talk show and made some comments to then-teenaged actress Lindsey Lohan that rubbed some on social media the wrong way. In a post on X, formerly Twitter, user Chris Evans shared a clip of Anthony Anderson serving as a guest host for The Sharon Osbourne Show in 2003, interviewing Lindsey Lohan, who was 17 at the time. Lohan greeted Anderson, leading him to joke that she kissed him on the lips, which she heavily denied. She then informed the Black-ish star (who was 33 at the time) that she and actress Raven-Symoné were getting a house together in Los Angeles. After remarking that she and Raven-Symoné were “beautiful women,” Anderson presented a pink pillow with his face on it to the actress, who was promoting her film Freaky Friday on DVD at the time. He asked, “What gentlemen will be at the new pad?” “No one,” Lohan answered, stating that she didn’t have a boyfriend. “Hmm, she’s single but looking!” Anderson responded. Lohan quickly replied, “But I’m illegal for people that are old.” After a second, Anderson joked, “Well, you know, some men like ’em young. We ain’t gonna mention no names, but, you know, I’m one of ’em.” It ends with Anderson promoting her upcoming movies to the audience, including a shot of Lohan looking visibly uncomfortable. The clip drew shocked reactions from various people on social media. One user on X named Tandyman replied, “Is it a rule that to be successful in Hollywood, you have to be a complete creep?” Anderson, now 54, had faced some sexual assault allegations in the past – the first was in 2004, when he and an assistant director for Hustle & Flow were accused of raping an extra on the set. Charges were eventually dropped against the two. In 2018, Anderson was reportedly being investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department for an alleged sexual assault. The District Attorney’s office would later drop those charges, citing that the defendant declined to be interviewed. “This interview was clearly intended as comedy,” Anderson’s representative said to Entertainment Weekly and PEOPLE Magazine, who initially covered the story and the backlash online. “He regrets if the humor was in poor taste and maintains the utmost respect for Lindsay. Any implication to the contrary is both inaccurate and potentially defamatory.” See social media’s reaction to the resurfaced interview below.
