Ayo Edebiri politely interjected during an interviewer’s line of questioning about Black Lives Matter after she was excluded from the conversation.
The awkward scene took place at the Venice Film Festival where Edebiri, Julia Roberts, and Andrew Garfield all spoke with reporter Frederica Polidoro to promote their new movie, After The Hunt. Due to the film’s subject matter drawing comparisons to the #MeToo movement, a reporter decided to ask Roberts and Garfield — and only Roberts and Garfield — about movements in the United States.
"What [have] we lost in the politically correct era?” and “What [do] we have to expect in Hollywood after the Me Too movement and Black Lives Matter are done?” asked the reporter, before clarifying that she was asking Roberts and Andrews.
Edeberi took charge of the moment to answer the question anyway.
"Yeah, I know that that’s not for me, and I don’t know if it’s purposeful if it’s not me, but I just am curious," she began.
“I don’t think it’s done, I don’t think it’s done at all. I think maybe hashtags might not be used as much, but I do think that there’s work being done by activists, by people, every day, that’s beautiful, important work that’s not finished, that’s really, really, really active – for a reason, because this world is really charged. And that work isn’t finished at all,” she added.
On Sunday (Sept. 7), Polidoro responded to the controversy with a long "#officialstatement" on Instagram.
"To those who unjustly accuse me of racism, I would like to clarify that in my work I have interviewed people of every background and ethnicity, and my own family is multi-ethnic, matriarchal, and feminist, with a significant history of immigration," she wrote in part.
"In my view, the real racists are those who see racism everywhere and seek to muzzle journalism, limiting freedom of analysis, critical thinking, and the plurality of perspectives."
In other Edebiri news, the actress has been announced to be headed to the Broadway stage for a revival of the famous play Proof. She’ll be joined by Don Cheadle for the production, which begins previews on Mar. 31, 2026 before it opens on Apr. 16.