Keke Palmer Says ‘Scream Queens’ Co-Star Hasn’t Apologized for Making Racist Remark — But Reached Out
After Keke Palmer revealed that one of her former Scream Queens co-stars made a racist remark to her while on set, she is giving an update on where they stand now.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times last year, the actress discussed writing her memoir Master of Me: The Secret to Controlling Your Narrative, in which she shares anecdotes from her career. When writing about her two seasons on the Fox series Scream Queens, alongside Emma Roberts, Billie Lourd, Skyler Samuels and Lea Michele, she recalled a time when creator Ryan Murphy allegedly called her “unprofessional” and a former co-star made a racist remark to her after Palmer tried to mediate tensions between them and another colleague.
“Keke, literally, just don’t. Who do you think you are? Martin f—— Luther King?” Palmer writes that the person said in response at the time.
Though Palmer never reveals the identity of the co-star that made the remark, she did share that they have yet to apologize. In an interview with The Cut published Tuesday, Palmer said that even though the co-star has never apologized for what they said, they did reach out to her on Instagram to congratulate Palmer on the release of her book.
“I was like, ‘Hey, thanks, it feels good,’” she said. “She was just checking the temperature. She knows what she did.”
As for Murphy, who Palmer had also previously alleged called her “unprofessional” and was angry with her over working a business obligation during a day she wasn’t originally supposed to be on set, Palmer told The Cut she hasn’t “directly” heard from him since sharing the anecdote.
“I definitely think that he thought that I could have been attacking him or trying to shame him or send the mobs after him,” she said. “But the point of my bringing up Ryan Murphy wasn’t ‘Fuck Ryan Murphy, he ain’t shit.’ It was, ‘Look, I did what I had to do for me, and it caused me an issue with one of the most popular and successful men in the industry, and sometimes getting to your personal success may cost you to do the same thing.’”
Since Scream Queens, Palmer has yet to work with Murphy again but she noted, “That was just a job. It wasn’t the end goal. That was a stepping stone to me building the Keke Palmer brand.”
In her memoir, which published Nov. 19, Palmer “talks about everything from her struggles with boundaries to unconditional love, forgiveness and worthiness.” She also “gets candid about the tools she’s developed to take the reins, harness her vulnerability and recognize ownership in the narrative of her life, which allowed her to turn personal power into major power.”
