Jesse Williams has admitted that leaked nude footage of him from the Broadway play “Take Me Out” has increased ticket sales.
Last month, the “Grey’s Anatomy” actor trended online after an unauthorized video of him appearing naked in a scene was taken by an audience member and later released on social media.
While Jesse Williams noted he “wasn’t really worried” about the video at the time, in a new interview for The Hollywood Reporter, he confessed there had been an uptick in interest in the show – which follows a gay baseball player coming out to his teammates and the press.
“It’s not me on stage, it’s the character, and I’m looking at my scene partner, and we’re in a different world; there’s no penetration – that’s a really poor choice of words here,” Jesse Williams laughed. “So it’s unfortunate, but whatever. It has not affected the performance. But it certainly improved ticket sales.”
Theatergoers must put their devices in special cases for “Take Me Out,: which can only be unlocked in the lobby.
Accordingly, Jesse Williams explained that he is “still processing” the incident.
“Sometimes you need some remove from some of this stuff. There were things that came out that and if you can be lighthearted about it, you can laugh it off,” the 40-year-old continued. “But then also you think about what actually happened, and what it took (from the perpetrator): You walked in and agreed to put your phones away, and you agreed that you would not film what we were doing – it’s a private, sacred space where we’re doing something – and you violated that, and you didn’t just violate it, you violated it and then said, “F### it, let me put it on the Internet for the world” – so that’s not good.”
Jesse has landed a Tony Award nomination for his performance in the play.
