Wil Anderson Addresses Alleged 'Meltdown' On 'Gruen' Set
The comic was accused of lashing out towards audience members for not laughing at his jokes.
Wil Anderson has openly discussed the alleged "meltdown" he had earlier this month on the set of Gruen during the latest episode of his podcast Wilosophy.
While ABC rubbished claims he lashed out at audience members during a taping, the revered Aussie comic spoke about the incident with guest Em Rusciano in reference to her own philosophy, "Be kind and don't take shit from anyone".
"As much as I care about the writing of [Gruen] and the producing of it and the researching of it and all these things, the audience is another factor in it," Anderson explained.
"So we can get to the night and if the audience isn't giving the panel the energy or attention that they need, then I'm not getting out of my panel what I need from them."
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While Anderson rejected speculation he was aggressive towards the in-studio audience, he did claim they proved to be a tough crowd.
"I cajoled and I tried to plead with the audience and I joked with them... sometimes when worst comes to worst, you've just got to at half time give them the classic country footy coach spray, you know?"
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"You've just gotta go, 'I'm sorry, but you're being shit'. And someone in the audience is like, 'I thought it was a bit boring' and I said, 'Well, if you think it's boring, fuck off!'"
He insisted however that his response was "in jest", saying "I didn't call security, I didn't actually make them fuck off… all I was asking from them was, don't be shit. I asked and then I had to tell".
Anderson continued, "Even if it were true, it wasn't, but even if it were — kindness and not taking shit from people — right in that moment.
"Because the only reason that I was doing it was as a kindness to my panelists who were not getting what they needed to do their job properly and as a kindness to the people who make the show, who had done all this beautiful work on it that wasn't being supported by the last cog in that rank.
"That was my kindness. And the bit where someone said it was a bit boring and I said...fuck off, is me not taking shit from other people."
Listen to the full podcast with Rusciano here.
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