Constance Wu is baring her soul about the struggles of life in the spotlight.
On Thursday (June 14), the 40-year-old Fresh Off The Boat actress returned to social media after three years. She opened up about why she took a break from acting, vulnerably revealing some incredibly heavy and heartbreaking details about what she’s been going through behind the scenes.
Constance took to Twitter to address the backlash that she received after she tweeted her frustration when Fresh Off The Boat was renewed in 2019 for a sixth season, which caused her to have to give up another opportunity. She also heartbreakingly revealed that she attempted suicide because of it.
Read her full message right here:
“Hi everybody. I haven’t been on social media in almost 3 years. Tbh, I’m a little scared, but I’m dipping my toe back in to say I’m here and while I was gone I wrote a book called Making a Scene. This next part is hard to talk about…but I was afraid of coming back on social media because I almost lost my life from it: 3 years ago, when I made careless tweets about the renewal of my TV show, it ignited outrage and internet shaming that got pretty severe. I felt awful about what I’d said, and when a few DMs from a fellow Asian actress told me I’d become a blight on the Asian American community, I started feeling like I didn’t even deserve to live anymore. That I was a disgrace to AsAms, and they’d be better off without me. Looking back, it’s surreal that a few DMs convinced me to end my own life, but that’s what happened. Luckily, a friend found me and rushed me to the ER.
It was a scary moment that made me reassess a lot in my life. For the next few years, put my career aside to focus on my mental health. AsAms don’t talk about mental health enough. While we’re quick to celebrate representation wins, there’s a lot of avoidance around the more uncomfortable issues within our community. Even my tweets became a subject so touchy that most of my AsAm colleagues decided that was the time to avoid me or ice me out. I’ll admit it hurt a lot, but it also made me realize how important it is to reach out and care for people who are going through a hard time.
That’s why I wrote my book and why I’m here today – to reach out and help people talk about the uncomfortable stuff in order to understand it, reckon with it, and open pathways to healing. If we want to be seen, really seen… we need to let all of ourselves be seen, including the parts we’re scared of or ashamed of parts that, however imperfect, require care and attention. And we need to stop beating each other and ourselves) up when we do. So while my book is not always the most flattering portrayal, it’s as honest as I know how to be. Because the truth is, I’m not poised or graceful or perfect. I’m emotional. I make mistakes…lots of ‘em!
After a little break from Hollywood and a lot of therapy I feel OK enough to venture back on here (at least for a little bit). And even though I’m scared, I’ve decided that I owe it to the me-of-3-years-ago to be brave and share my story so that it might help someone with theirs.”
