Marlon Wayans is a well-known figure in the Wayans family comedy dynasty. He’s been in the entertainment business for over thirty years, with plenty of highs and a fair share of controversies, which we’ll dive into today.
Back in 2000, Jimmy Fallon, while on Saturday Night Live, did a sketch where he wore blackface to impersonate Chris Rock. In the sketch, he said, “Man oh man, just I seen ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ and guess what, not a lot of black folks on the show.” If you’re not familiar with the history, let’s break it down. Blackface is not just about painting your face darker or wearing a costume. It has a deeply racist and painful history from the mid-19th century minstrel shows. White performers would darken their skin, wear ragged clothes, and exaggerate their features to mock black people, portraying them as lazy, ignorant, cowardly, or hypersexual. According to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, these shows were meant to be funny to white audiences but were and still are incredibly demeaning and hurtful to the black community.
In 2020, a 20-year-old clip of Jimmy Fallon in blackface resurfaced, causing a massive uproar on social media. The hashtag #JimmyFallonIsOverParty quickly started trending as people called for his cancellation. Jimmy responded on Twitter, saying, “In 2000, while on SNL, I made a terrible decision to impersonate Chris Rock while in blackface. There is no excuse for this. I am very sorry for making this unquestionably offensive decision and thank all of you for holding me accountable.”
Then Marlon Wayans stepped in to defend Jimmy. He tweeted, calling the outrage “dumb as hell” and describing Jimmy as “one of the nicest guys” he knows in the industry. Marlon added, “Y’all stop digging up old sh- Go find a new tree to piss on. This one is dry.” But a white guy from Australia wasn’t having it. He replied to Marlon’s tweet, “So blackface is okay depending on who did it? How does that work?” Marlon shot back, “Who’s telling the joke? Is it introspective and authentic and is it funny?” If it was so funny and no big deal, then why did Jimmy apologize, Marlon?
This exchange only added fuel to the fire. People started calling Marlon every name in the book and urging him to educate himself on the history of blackface to understand why people were so upset.
This wasn’t Marlon’s first controversy. In 2014, he attended a Jay-Z and Beyoncé concert in LA and took a photo of a woman dancing nearby. He posted it on social media with the caption, “Man, I got the most unrhythmic white woman dancing next to me at the Jay-Z and Bey concert.” It turned out the woman was Australian pop star Delta Goodrem, and her fans were furious. They were ready to drag him.
People accused Marlon of invading Delta’s privacy and being racist. Marlon fired back, “I love that all these people calling me racist ‘cuz I stated a fact, she can’t dance. Apparently, neither can you. Now get out of here. One day people are going to understand I simply don’t give a f- and I refuse to succumb to this new world order of not having an opinion.” He clearly wasn’t backing down.
As the backlash ensued, Marlon doubled down on his remarks by repeatedly reposting the photo of Delta. He even shared it in black and white with the caption, “In black and white, still can’t dance.” It’s a bit funny. Delta took the high road, tweeting that she had fun at the concert and included a link to a video of Elaine from Seinfeld dancing offbeat.
In 2004, Marlon and his brother Shawn starred in the movie “White Chicks,” which was directed and co-written by their older brother Keenan. In the film, their characters go undercover as two white women to solve a crime. While the film received mixed reviews, it was a hit with moviegoers, debuting at number two during its opening weekend. It wasn’t until the social unrest of the summer of 2020 that the film received renewed scrutiny. Conservative news outlets engaged in whataboutism, arguing, “If a white person performing in blackface is racist, then what about two black guys performing as white women in ‘White Chicks’? Isn’t that racist too?” With several outlets calling for the film and the Wayans brothers to be canceled, Marlon told Entertainment Weekly, “You know who loves ‘White Chicks’ the most? White chicks. That’s how you know it’s a good movie.” In a 2020 interview with BuzzFeed, he slammed cancel culture, stating that no one and nothing could make him stop telling jokes. He also emphasized that a “White Chicks” sequel was extremely necessary since the world had become so uptight.
For several years, Marlon kept his long-term relationship with Angelica Zachary out of the public eye. They started dating in 1992 and had two children together. Some people even thought they were married after Marlon referred to her as his wife. However, they never officially tied the knot. In 2013, Marlon was caught on a yacht in St. Barts kissing a mystery woman, sparking cheating allegations. The internet criticized him for the appearance of his mistress, with some saying, “Marlon Wayans with a white girl? Would it be better if she were pitch black?” Marlon later tweeted, “Speculation, assumptions, perceptions. You don’t know me and you don’t know my style. Keep guessing though.” But we don’t need to guess; we see your cheating in 4K, okay?
A few years after being caught cheating, Marlon appeared on The Breakfast Club and praised Angelica for sticking with him during the scandal. His fans forgave him, and many assumed he and Angelica had worked things out. However, in December 2022, it came to light that Marlon had welcomed a baby girl named Axel with a 30-year-old woman named Brittany Morland. Just one day after Axel’s birth, Marlon signed a voluntary declaration of parentage.
By March 2024, Brittany filed for full legal and physical custody of Axel. She also requested that Marlon cover her legal fees and the reasonable expenses of pregnancy and birth. In the court documents, Brittany mentioned that she was unemployed and had monthly expenses totaling over $22,000. She claimed Marlon earned $200,000 a month and could afford to pay support, including $55,000 for daycare and $3,000 for groceries and household supplies.
Marlon responded by asking for joint legal and physical custody and joint payment of legal fees. He also released a statement to The Shade Room, saying the situation was a classic case of a responsible father being asked for excessive support. He remarked, “My mama and them would have lost their minds for $2,000. Have you ever heard of inflation, ninja? This ain’t 1978.” He added, “All these women dragging men to court who pay nothing towards their children, and here a woman gets a doctor’s salary and says it isn’t enough.”
Online users were quick to criticize him. One person wrote, “I don’t see how any woman could look at Marlon and think, yep, that’s the man I want to have a baby with. If you were going to have a baby with a Wayans, at least let it be Shawn, who’s attractive.”
Marlon’s reputation as non-committal and possibly a poor partner was reinforced by his own comments. He told The Breakfast Club he wouldn’t get married until he was ready to be faithful. Years later, he told the New York Times, “I never got married because I never wanted my mother to be jealous of a woman. I never wanted my mother to feel second to any woman.”
Marlon’s mother passed away in 2020 at the age of 81. Although he’s now free to marry whoever he wants, it doesn’t seem like he’ll be getting married anytime soon. Some believe he should stay single.
On August 5th, 2023, a significant altercation broke out at the riverfront dock in downtown Montgomery, Alabama. The incident quickly went viral, drawing attention due to its racial undertones and the response from the black Riverboat employees who fiercely defended themselves. Some people online even joked about creating a new holiday called “Cinco de Augusto,” similar to Cinco de Mayo, to commemorate the event, dubbing it “chair day” and suggesting it be celebrated alongside Juneteenth.
Online users added to the buzz by pairing the brawl footage with Jason Aldean’s controversial song “Try That in a Small Town.” However, not everyone found it amusing. Marlon took to Instagram, urging people to embrace love over conflict, writing, “How about we not try that in a small town, silly bro? Let’s all just be love, not war.” His comments were quickly met with backlash, with many perceiving them as criticism of the black participants in the fight. Facing intense criticism, Marlon tried to clarify his stance, saying, “Why would I criticize black people for defending themselves? That’s the thing about social media, man. It’s left for interpretation. Y’all tripping. People want to make articles for clicks. I’m done with it. I don’t care. Black people know I love black people. I’m black.” Despite his efforts, many social media users remained unconvinced, with one person referencing a 2022 interview where Marlon remarked, “White people celebrate white people. Black people have been taught to be crabs in a barrel. Let’s break each other down further. Let’s not celebrate our greats. They call their greats geniuses. They call ours coons and buffoons.”
In 2015, audio surfaced of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan making racist remarks. In the recording, he expressed his disapproval of his daughter Brooke dating a black man who had offered to support her music career. Hogan was heard saying, “I mean, I don’t have double standards. I mean, I am a racist to a point.” He continued, “I mean, I’d rather if she was going to f- some, I’d rather have her marry an 8ft tall n- worth $100 million like a basketball player. I guess we’re all a little racist.” The WWE subsequently ended its relationship with him. Hogan later apologized in an interview with People magazine, calling his language unacceptable and offensive and stating, “This is not who I am. I believe very strongly that every person in the world is important and should not be treated differently based on race, gender, orientation, religious beliefs, or otherwise.” However, many critics doubted his sincerity, pointing out the scripted nature of his statement and questioning the authenticity of his remorse.
Guess who came to Hulk Hogan’s defense? Marlon, of course. Marlon shared a picture of himself planting a huge kiss on Hulk’s cheek at a charity event. In his caption, he wrote, “Hulk Hogan racist? He sure wasn’t on this day, ha! You can’t erase racism without love. This picture is so much funnier and more powerful amidst the recent scandal.” Seriously, what is this guy thinking? He also added that we need to pray for Hulk Hogan and thank him for the entertainment he gave us as children. What is he talking about? I’m not wasting my prayers on someone who wouldn’t care if I was in trouble. No way, Hulk Hogan.
Marlon’s decision to overlook the audio where Hulk Hogan admitted to being racist and instead ask people to pray for the wrestler didn’t sit right with many. One woman commented, “You’re rich, so you’re okay in his book. He probably washed his face with bleach when he got home.” Marlon has a knack for saying things that stir up controversy