The Australian stage production of Green Day’s American Idiot has seen one of its lead cast members dismissed from the project due to “inappropriate behaviour”.
Earlier today, actor Linden Furnell, who currently appears in the production as the character of ‘Johnny’, took to Facebook to address the issue, confirming that he is no longer part of the cast.
“Yesterday I was fired from American Idiot on account of ‘serious misconduct’. I wasn’t asked to explain, give my account, dispute it or attempt resolution,” Furnell explained on Facebook.
“Those that know me well, are probably accustomed to my impulsive mind and somewhat inactive filter. The majority of the time it serves me well and makes me the inventive performer that I am. In this particular case it sabotaged me.”
Furnell explained that the incident that at the centre of his dismissal involved himself and the actress who currently plays the role of ‘Whatsername’ during what he refers to as a “sex scene”.
“Without thought, I made a crude allusion to menstruation amongst the banter. It was in poor taste and a lame attempt at humour. The kind of thing you say to make your friends go “euugghhh gross”,” Furnell explained. “I found out later that same night via a text conversation with her that it had made her very uncomfortable and thrown off her show. Naturally, when I discovered the fact I apologised immediately and said that I would do what was necessary to avoid making that mistake again and reassured that I definitely did not intend to cause hurt or discomfort.”
“I made a poor judgement call, assumed too much comfort in a work friendship. I apologised again for the upset caused.”
https://www.facebook.com/LindFurn/posts/1547944785322205
Linden Furnell closed his post with a rather honest summation of the situation. “Not a call for anyone’s pity or scorn. This is an update on where I’m at so I don’t get a bazillion messages about why I’m no longer playing Johnny in American Idiot. I made a mistake, owned up to it, was immediately fired. That’s hopefully the end of it.”
In a statement released to The Music, Nick Skubij, Artistic Director of the shake & stir theatre co, confirmed the dismissal of Linden Furnell.
“Ahead of the Melbourne opening of American Idiot the musical, Mr Furnell was dismissed from his role in the musical,” the statement read.
“Mr Furnell’s dismissal was a consequence of breaching the company’s ‘Statement of Zero Tolerance to Inappropriate Behaviour’ previously communicated to him and all other company members by company management,” it continued. “The decision to dismiss Mr Furnell was not taken lightly.”
“Accordingly, and in the interests of a healthy and safe workplace, the company decided to act. At the time of his dismissal, Mr Furnell advised in writing his acceptance of the termination.”
“For shake & stir theatre co, the well-being and safety of all our company members and all our employees is our top priority.”
No further information in regards to the future of the production or its casting has been made public as yet.
