Jamie Foxx has responded to the backlash that Jimmy Fallon has been facing after an Saturday Night Live sketch in which Jimmy does blackface recently resurfaced. Back in 2000, when the late night host was still a regular on the sketch comedy show, Jimmy did an impression of former cast member, Chris Rock, for which he painted his skin brown.
The sketch has received criticism in the years since it aired, although it appears that it's made its way back into the public consciousness once again. This time, The Tonight Show decided it was time to acknowledge the backlash, issuing an apology for his "unquestionably offensive decision" to do blackface on the show.
However, not everyone agrees that the move was wrong, or could even be considered blackface. On Wednesday, Jamie Foxx commented on an Instagram post by E! News that had reported Jimmy's apology, coming to the defense of his fellow comedian. "He was doing an impression of chris rock," Jamie wrote. "It wasn’t black face. We comedians I know it’s a tough time right now. But this one is a stretch. On a show called in living color we played every race Let this one go. We got bigger fish to fry ... #changecourse."
