LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Tina Fey once revealed a sensational exchange between Jimmy Fallon and Amy Poehler in her book ‘Bossypants’ which is now gaining attention on the internet.
Recently, the 48-year-old comedian who came under internet scrutiny for creating a “toxic” work culture on the sets of ‘The Tonight Show’.
Amid these controversies, Fallon’s snarky comments on Amy Poehler’s response is not only getting unprecedented internet attention but also left the netizens in splits.
What did Amy Poehler say to Jimmy Fallon?
On September 7, a social media user shared a passage from Fey’s book which revealed the exchange between the duo.
Fey wrote in her memoir, “Amy Poehler was new to SNL and we were all crowded into the seventeenth-floor writers' room, waiting for the Wednesday night read-through to start.”
She continued in the book, “Amy was in the middle of some such nonsense with Seth Meyers across the table, and she did something vulgar as a joke. I can’t remember what it was exactly, except it was dirty and loud and "unladylike””.
Following which, Fey wrote, “Jimmy Fallon turned to her and in a faux-squeamish voice said, "Stop that! It’s not cute! I don’t like it."”
The passage continued, “Amy dropped what she was doing, went black in the eyes for a second, and wheeled around on him. "I don’t f**king care if you like it."”
Fey commented on Fallon’s reaction, as she said, “Jimmy was visibly startled,” before adding, “Amy went right back to enjoying her ridiculous bit.”
She wrote, “With that exchange, a cosmic shift took place,” and explained, “Amy made it clear that she wasn’t there to be cute.”
Fey wrote, “She wasn’t there to play wives and girlfriends in the boys’ scenes. She was there to do what she wanted to do and she did not f**king care if you like it.”
The exchange between Fallon and Poehler on the sets of ‘Saturday Night Live’, is recently getting much attention amid the controversy regarding Fallon being responsible for a “toxic’ workplace.
What were the allegations against Jimmy Fallon?
In an article published by Rolling Stone, 16 of his former and current staff members accused Fallon of creating an office culture not conducive to work. One of the former employees even accused him of throwing “hissy fits.”
Fallon’s “mood swings” were also highlighted by the staffers who said, “It was like, if Jimmy is in a bad mood, everyone’s day is f*****.”
Someone else said that they even contemplated suicide because of the stress and anxiety generated in the work place.
Following the allegations, Fallon apologized to his employees over a Zoom call where reportedly said “I feel so bad I can't even tell you,” per Rolling Stone.
He further allegedly added, “It's embarrassing and I feel so bad,” before adding, “Sorry if I embarrassed you and your family and friends… I feel so bad I can't even tell you.” per two employees who purportedly attended the meeting.
Fallon reportedly added, “I want the show to be fun, [it] should be inclusive to everybody,” before continuing, “It should be the best show.”
'I was today years old when I became an Amy Poehler fan'
As the passage gained traction on the internet, it had a polarizing effect on people with some siding with Amy Poehler, and some standing up for Jimmy Fallon.
One fan who defended Fallon said, "I'm sorry, but that doesn't make him look bad. I mean she didn't say anything bad about him. It just shows that Amy didn't care what he thought. Kudos to her but again there's nothing bad about Jimmy there. I need y'all to do better."
Someone, on the other hand, voiced their support for Poehler and said, "Good for Amy Poehler! Her and Tina Fey are Goddesses!"
However, a Fallon fan defended the funnyman, "Sounds like he was just trying to be part of the bit and she killed the vibes ngl "in a faux-squeamish voice" like a joking voice? Like a room full of comedians and he was trying to joke around? Crazy, but I wasn't there tbf."
"I was today years old when I became an Amy Poehler fan," declared someone else.
Nevertheless, a Fallon fan quipped, "Literally explain to me how Fallon is in the wrong here. Like... all I see is him getting clapped back in a rude way for absolutely no sensible reason. If he did that to her he would be a villain too btw."
"Ah, yes, I recall that anecdote. Never liked the guy nor saw the appeal," remembered someone else.
Someone else remarked, "I'm not trying to say I don't believe that his show was a hostile work environment but this anecdote is hardly an example. as someone said earlier, they were joking around. Fey was sharing the story to show how badass Amy is, but not to put down Jimmy, I think."
Another fan quipped, "Amy Poehler, who has the exact opposite reputation as Fallon. No one has a bad word to say about her."
Elsewhere, another netizen commented, "Not knowing any other context I read "faux squeamish voice" and it feels like he's just playing while Poehler is over reacting. Feels like most of the reactions are foregone conclusions from what's probably 'everything else' but the text for this interaction."
