Donald Glover On Accuastions Of Misogynoir: ‘Anybody Who Actually Knows Me Knows How Much That Hurts Me

Donald Glover recently got candid about accusations that have swirled around him in recent years when it comes to Black women.

Glover’s personal and professional relationship with Black women has been multifaceted and complex. Throughout his career, he has collaborated with and showcased the talents of numerous Black women in various projects, including Dominique Fishback, who portrayed Dre in the satirical comedy and Beyoncé-inspired series Swarm he co-created. The show follows Fishback’s character, who develops a deadly obsession with pop star Ni’Jah and kills anyone who talks negatively about the famous singer.

In a March 2023 interview with Vulture, Fishback shared how eager she was to play Dre in the series. But she soon regretted it after realizing her character’s darkness and involvement with violence were similar to what she witnessed in real life. With Fishback’s concerns surrounding her character, Glover decided not to inform her about Dre having a backstory or humanization. 

“I kept telling her, ‘You’re not regular people. You don’t have to find the humanity in your character. That’s the audience’s job,'” Glover said, according to Vulture. “She really was lost a lot of the time.” He told Fishback, “Think of it more like an animal and less like a person.”

The 40-year-old’s controversial comments about Fishback went viral, and social media users called him out. Since then, Glover has been asked questions about his relationships with Black women and how he feels about them. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Glover was asked about his Interview magazine feature a few years ago, in which he interviewed himself.

When asked about the question he asked himself about fearing Black women, Glover said the thought of it truly affected him.

“I felt like it was something that people always say, but no one ever asked because I felt like people really don’t want to know. It is a better narrative. But anybody who actually knows me knows how much that hurts me,” Glover told the outlet. He added, “But I also realize it doesn’t matter. People are not going to read this and be like, ‘Wow, I was wrong.'”