Gillian Anderson has spoken out for the first time about a viral clip depicting her greeting fans at the stage door of her latest West End show.
The two-time winner can currently be seen in action in a London revival of Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?, co-starring Billy Crudup.
Over the weekend, footage of Gillian greeting people at the theatre’s stage door was widely shared on X and TikTok, due to the fact she could be heard telling them: “You guys cannot sit in the front row. I do not care – you cannot sit in the front row. It’s so distracting.
“You can’t come 20 times and sit in the front row, it’ll drive me mad.”
As the clip racked up more and more views, with more than one million people watching it on X alone, it began sparking a debate about the “parasocial” relationship between celebrities and members of their public, particularly in a theatre setting.
Setting the record straight on Sunday afternoon, the Sex Education star insisted: “The video doing the rounds is me talking with women I go back over 20 years with – so please don’t say anything negative to or about them.”
“We’re thrilled to be doing this show but for people in the front row, please be aware that in such an intimate venue we can all see you and sometimes, it can be a tad distracting!” she then conceded. “That’s all. All good.”
Gillian then added: “On with the show and love to everyone and thank you to all of those coming.”
Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? is showing at London’s @SohoPlace theatre until December.
Theatre etiquette is becoming an increasingly prevalent discussion as more A-listers have been cast in major productions on both sides of the Atlantic, with Cynthia Erivo, Rosamund Pike and Cate Blanchett among those to call out audiences for using their phones during performances in recent history.
