One of the lead cast members of the Australian American Idiot musical, Linden Furnell, has been dropped from the cast for “inappropriate behaviour”.
Nick Skubij, the Artistic Director of shake & stir theatre co., confirmed that Furnell was “dismissed” from his role as Johnny in the Green Day musical after, “breaching the company’s ‘Statement of Zero Tolerance to Inappropriate Behaviour’.”
“The well-being and safety of all our company members and all our employees is our top priority,” the statement further read.
The confirmation came after Furnell broke the news on his own Facebook page, explaining his version of events.
Furnell admitted to not being “careful” and making a “mistake” during one scene where, “Johnny and Whatsername have sex.”
“It was a particularly hot night in an old theatre without suitable aircon and we were both comically sweaty,” he said.
“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”.”
He further said that he found out “via a text conversation” with the unnamed cast member that it had made her, “very uncomfortable and thrown off her show.”
He apologised immediately after and said that he, “genuinely regret[s] the upset I caused that day.”
“I made a mistake, owned up to it, was immediately fired. That’s hopefully the end of it,” he concluded.
The musical is currently in Melbourne.
