Vanessa Morgan is fed up with Black characters being used for tokenized representation! As Entertainment Tonight reports, Morgan took to Twitter earlier this week with a strongly worded post calling the media out and demanding they do better.
"Tired of how black people are portrayed in Media, tired of us being portrayed as thugs, dangerous or angry scary people," Morgan said. "Tired of us also being used as side kick non dimensional characters to our white leads. Or only used in the ads for diversity but not actually in the show. It starts with the media."
Morgan shares that she's "paid the least" in main Riverdale cast
Morgan, whose character "Toni Topaz" is a fan favourite on Riverdale, also shared a shocking fact about her salary. "imagine they're getting so much more bang for their buck bc ur part of an lgbt storyline too, double the diversity - DOUBLE UR PAYCHECK IMO," someone commented on Twitter, referencing "Toni's" bisexuality and relationship with "Cheryl Blossom" in the show.
"Lmao too bad I’m the only black series regular but also paid the least girl i could go on for days," Morgan replied in response. As Entertainment Tonight mentions, she later made another tweet in defense of the Riverdale cast.
"My role on Riverdale has nothing to do with my fellow castmates/friends," Morgan said. "They don’t write the show. So no need to attack them, they don’t call the shots & I know they have my back."
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Morgan's Riverdale castmates show their support for her online
Morgan's tweet about Black representation saw several of her costars voicing their support. "Don't even get me started with how Riverdale treated the Pussycats," tweeted Asha Bromfield, who played "Melody Valentine," a member of girl group Josie and the Pussycats. "We had so much more to contribute than standing in the background and adding sass to a storyline. I stand with you @VanessaMorgan."
Lili Reinhart, who recently came out as bisexual and plays "Betty Cooper" on Riverdale, also tweeted to back Morgan. "We love you, V. And support you 10000%," Reinhart said. British actress Ashley Madekwe also chimed in, empathizing with Morgan's words."'Only used in the ads for diversity' Yeah, definitely been there," she said in response.
