Constance Wu opens up about personal struggles & sexual harassment

Constance Wu is sharing the tale of her suicide attempt in 2019 and the aftermath. The Crazy Rich Asians and Hustlers actress spoke about the surprising disclosures in her book Making a Scene on Wednesday's Red Table Talk, which was broadcast via Facebook Watch. These incidents include being sexually assaulted and groped by a male Fresh Off the Boat producer, as well as receiving hostility after expressing her displeasure at the show's renewal. She attempted suicide when she was "canceled" because of her tweets and received hate mail from a variety of sources, including the Asian American community. Wu sat on the edge of her balcony on the fifth floor, looking out at her New York City street, at her lowest point during the backlash. A friend who had stopped by to see how she was doing "pulled me over - from climbing over the ledge" as she pondered her future. For life-saving mental health therapy, the buddy "dragged" Wu "into the elevator, [placed] me into a cab, and brought me to a psychiatric emergency hospital." "I slept the night on a cot in the waiting room of the psychiatric ER under observation," she said. The next morning, she began counseling and then she started therapy with a psychiatrist and psychologist every day. "I needed it. I was unsafe at that point," she recalled. "I was in a mental place of just beating myself up. And so much shame. Feeling like I didn't deserve to live. Feeling like the world hated me. Feeling like I ruined everything for everyone. Maybe I did for some people, but, you know, people make mistakes, right?" The general public was unaware of Wu's allegations of sexual harassment by a Fresh Off the Boat producer when she sent those memorable tweets. After the success of her film Crazy Rich Asians, they merely assumed she was a "diva," "ungrateful," and that she believed she had become "too good for the show." "With the information the public had, of course I don't fault people for thinking that," she said. "What people didn't realize that during my first couple years on [the hit show lauded for its Asian representation], I was sexually harassed and I was intimidated and I was threatened — all the time." She described how the producer had harassed her sexually by letting her know how he liked her hair done. was instructed to wear short skirts. She graded her friends on whether or not he would "f***" them. He sent her a hot selfie request via text late at night. She claimed that "he kept an eye on every aspect of my existence." She felt "guilty," as if she had contributed in some way. She declared, "This is my first major TV show ever." Her perspective had been: "I have to act like I'm a member of the boys' club. I have to act as if I am okay with this conversation."