Not holding back. Matthew Morrison’s wife, Renee Puente, is speaking her mind after the actor was fired from So You Think You Can Dance amid allegations of “inappropriate” behavior.
“It’s been a wild ride… My husband has finally been given an opportunity to speak his truth,” Puente, 37, captioned her Instagram repost of Morrison’s video on Thursday, June 2. “He has done so with such grace and integrity in a situation that is complex and incredibly complicated.”
She echoed the Glee alum’s thoughts on the harmful nature of “gossip,” which he spoke about extensively in his own Instagram footage. “Gossip and cruelty are poison that have penetrated the depths of our society and somehow have made people forget their true nature- Love & compassion,” the Hawaii native continued, quoting Jay Shetty. “‘Negativity is a trait, not someone’s identity. A persons true nature can be obscured by clouds, but, like the sun it is always there. And clouds can overcome any of us.’“
Puente implored her followers to “stop perpetuating hate and shame. Period. NO ONE DESERVES IT.” She concluded her post with another quote about the power of letting go.
“‘Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness. If, in our heart, we still cling to anything – anger, anxiety, or possessions – we cannot be free.’ ~Thich Nhat Hanh,” she shared. “We let go and go into freedom.To all those who have shined love and light in our lives through this… thank you 🙏🏽🌞 To all the rest- sending Love & Light.”
Us Weekly exclusively confirmed on May 27 that Morrison abruptly exited the judging panel on SYTYCD, less than one week into season 17. At the time, he shared in a statement that he “did not follow competition production protocols, preventing me from being able to judge the competition fairly.”
After the controversy made headlines, a source exclusively told Us that the Broadway actor had been accused of sending “flirty” text messages to a contestant that were somewhat “sexual” in nature.
“The messages contained sexual innuendos and were flirty to the extent he was overstepping boundaries,” the insider told Us on Wednesday, June 1. “He didn’t have sex with the contestant, but she complained to producers about him because the messages made her feel uncomfortable and awkward and then they took it to HR.”
Matthew Morrison and Renee Morrison Ryan Miller/Shutterstock
The following day, Morrison took to Instagram to share his side of the story.
“It’s really unfortunate that I have to sit here and defend myself and my family against blatantly untrue statements made anonymously,” the Finding Neverland alum claimed. “I have nothing to hide, so in the interest of transparency, I will read to you the one message that I wrote to a dancer on the show: ‘Hey, it’s Matthew. If you don’t mind, would love to get your number and talk you through some things.’ The end.”
He argued that he texted the contestant “because we both share a mutual respect for a choreographer” that he’s known for a long time, adding, “I was trying to help her get a job as a choreographer on the show.”
The Younger alum also spoke out on the topic of gossip as a whole.
“It’s devastating that we live in this world where gossip rules and people’s lives are being thrown around as clickbait. I think this is much bigger than me,” the actor asserted. “Gossip is toxic and is destroying our society, and we need to do better. In no way do I want this to take away from the show because dance has always been a unifying and healing modality. I genuinely wish all the contestants and my fellow judges all the best.”
Fox plans to investigate the matter further, the source told Us on Wednesday. A replacement judge, who will join JoJo Siwa and Stephen “tWitch” Boss, has not yet been announced.
