Last week, Euphoria star Lukas Gage went viral after he shared a video of a super awkward Zoom audition.
psa if youre a shit talking director make sure to mute ur shit on zoom mtgings
During the audition, the director he was auditioning for had forgotten to mute himself and was heard bad-mouthing Lukas and his apartment.
"These poor people live in these tiny apartments," the unnamed director said in a mocking tone. "Like, I'm looking at his background, and he's got his TV..."
Lukas handled it perfectly, cutting off the director by saying, "Yeah, it's a shitty apartment. Give me this job so I can get a better one."
After the clip made headlines, everyone was itching to know who the rude director was. Still, Lukas did not disclose.
But, this week the director provided a letter of apology to Deadline and revealed their name: Tristram Shapeero, director of beloved shows like The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Community, among others.
"You probably don’t know who I am, but you’re likely familiar with my story," Tristram said in the letter. "An actor, Lukas Gage, posted a clip on social media taken from a Zoom casting he and I had been a part of back in August. During it, an unmuted director makes reference to tiny apartments and ‘these poor people,’ referring to actors."
"Despite what is probably wise advice: to say the least possible and let this pass, I have decided to come forward, take responsibility, make the apology Mr. Gage deserves, and offer some background for my unacceptable and insensitive remarks," he continued.
"I am Tristram Shapeero, a 20-year veteran television director, half in the UK, and the second half here in the US."
"First and foremost, I offer Mr. Gage a sincere and unvarnished apology for my offensive words, my unprofessional behavior during the audition and for not giving him the focus and attention he deserved. My job is to evaluate performers against the part I am trying to cast. Lukas deserved better."
"This Zoom audition took place in August, after four months of lockdown. A number of my coworkers were also on the auditions, which happened over several days. It was emotional to see actors work so hard to win the few parts available and we were deeply moved by the passion of these young people under the extraordinary circumstances."
"I was using the word ‘poor’ in the sense of deserving sympathy, as opposed to any economic judgment. My words were being spoken from a genuine place of appreciation for what the actors were having to endure, stuck in confined spaces, finding it within themselves to give a role-winning performance under these conditions."
"As I say on the video, I’m mortified about what happened. While I can’t put the proverbial toothpaste back in the tube, I move forward from this incident a more empathetic man, a more focused director, and I promise, an even better partner to actors from the audition process to the final cut."
