“Wednesday” actor Percy Hynes White is addressing #MeToo allegations that circulated on social media earlier this year.
White, 21, played Nevermore Academy student and Wednesday’s (Jenna Ortega) love interest Xavier Thorpe in the record-breaking Netflix series. One Twitter user anonymously claimed in January 2023 that White assaulted her at a Toronto party she hosted and supplied alcohol and drugs to underage girls aged 13 to 14.
“He stalked, had sex, abused and busted my friend who was 13/14 at the time. Last I knew they had sex she was 16 and he was 20,” the anonymous Twitter user posted in a since-deleted thread. “He attacked me at one of those parties while I was too drunk, and he had cornered, pressured and assaulted many of my friends.”
White used Instagram Stories to clarify his past actions and close the assault allegations.
“Earlier this year, someone I’ve never met started a disinformation campaign about me online. Because of this, my family has been doxxed and my friends have received death threats,” White shared. “Photos of me underage were used, and examples of me acting in character were presented as hateful. friend Jane has been falsely portrayed as a victim and her attempts to set the record straight have been ignored.She has given me permission to include her in this message.
White continued: “The rumors are false. I cannot accept the portrayal of me as someone bigoted or criminally disregarding people’s safety. These are the kinds of baseless and damaging claims that can create distrust of victims.”
He added: “It is very painful to know that this misinformation has upset people. I’m really grateful to everyone who stood by me and helped me share the facts. The harassment of my family, friends and colleagues must stop, please. Thanks for taking the time to read this.
After the initial Twitter thread, a campaign was started to have White removed from “Wednesday”. The series has been greenlit for a second season.
said the protagonist Ortega Variety that the series is rotating for its second installment. “We’re dropping any romantic love interests for Wednesday, which is pretty awesome,” Ortega explained. “We had already pitched so many ideas, and I’m a very hands-on person. I want to know what’s going on. And with a character like Wednesday, who is so beloved and such a legend, I really didn’t want to misunderstand her. So I try to have as many conversations as possible. On set, with the writers and Tim (Burton), we’d all get together and go, ‘OK, what works and what doesn’t?’ Of course he was already very cooperative.”
