Jennifer Aniston Is "So Over Cancel Culture" And Says We Shouldn't Put Everyone Into The "Harvey Weinstein Basket"

Jennifer Aniston, a seasoned actress in Hollywood, has been taking more control over her career by wearing dual hats as both actor and producer. She is one of the stars and executive producers of the Apple Original series The Morning Show, alongside Reese Witherspoon. The show, which is coming back for its third season, mirrors real-world issues like sexual harassment and the pandemic, offering Aniston a character with whom she seems to resonate. Aniston talked about her career and personal life in a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal.

Jennifer Aniston Is "So Over Cancel Culture" and Says We Shouldn't Put Everyone into the "Harvey Weinstein Basket"

Aging gracefully at 54, Aniston recognizes the difficulties women face in Hollywood, particularly as they get older. The Morning Show addresses this issue head-on, with Aniston's character questioning her own aging process. Aniston and Witherspoon's journey in the industry has not been without its challenges. When the roles they wanted weren't available, they decided to create their own content, leading to their current collaboration.

Aniston’s production journey actually started earlier when she and then-husband Brad Pitt co-founded Plan B Entertainment in the early 2000s. After their divorce, Pitt stayed with Plan B, while Aniston moved on, maintaining an upbeat attitude about their respective paths. Aniston cites her experience on Friends as a critical learning period, particularly in understanding the business acumen required for collective salary negotiations.

Aniston and Witherspoon have a supportive behind-the-scenes dynamic, ensuring that their sets are devoid of toxicity. They view their production roles as a partnership, sharing the responsibility of running their respective companies—Echo Films for Aniston and Hello Sunshine for Witherspoon. Aniston’s company, Echo Films, has had a variety of projects, from comedy to drama, showcasing her range as an actor and a producer. However, The Morning Show stands out as a monumental project for her, marking a turning point in her career as a producer.

The Emmy-nominated show has received critical acclaim, and Aniston won a Screen Actors Guild award for her role. Mark Duplass, one of the show's actors, credits the good vibes on set to the leadership provided by Aniston and Witherspoon. In sum, Jennifer Aniston’s journey from America's sweetheart to a powerhouse producer reflects her versatility and her drive to take charge of her own narrative, particularly in an industry often unforgiving to aging women.

When talking about the cycle of the media in today's age, she briefly spoke about the role of cancel culture. "I'm so over cancel culture," she said. “I probably just got canceled by saying that. I just don’t understand what it means.… Is there no redemption? I don’t know. I don’t put everybody in the Harvey Weinstein basket.”

While there is some merit to holding people accountable for their actions—like Weinstein—that is a completely different issue than ending someone's career because they said or did something that mildly insulted you.

Aniston had plenty of experience with Weinstein, and although she doesn't exactly remember having the best time with him, she "never had any uncomfortable instances" with him either.

“He’s not a guy, you’re like, ‘God, I can’t wait to hang out with Harvey.’ Never. You were actually like, ‘Oh, God, OK, suck it up.’ I remember actually, he came to visit me on a movie to pitch me a movie," she recalled. "And I do remember consciously having a person stay in my trailer.”

Aniston is right to point out that the game of cancel culture has been blown out of proportion recently, with many celebrities and actors losing their popularity (or even their job) because of something they said in the past. Bachelor host Chris Harrison seemed to defend contestant Rachael Kirkconnell's past racist actions, attending a racially insensitive "Old South" party. The franchise, already criticized for lack of diversity, found this particularly ill-timed and he was let go from his job. Then there are the likes of JK Rowling, Roseanne Barr, and Louis CK. Perhaps Aniston is onto something—are all of these celebrities in the same league as Weinstein when it comes to offensive things they have said or done? Of course not. Pretending like these people are poisoning the industry (or society) and thus deserve to be removed from certain circles of entertainment is ridiculous at best and it only makes people terrified of sharing their own opinions.

While there is some merit to holding people accountable for their actions—like Weinstein—that is a completely different issue than ending someone's career because they said or did something that mildly insulted you.

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