You’ll recall the major dustup that occurred last year shortly following the announcement comedian Kevin Hart would host the 2019 Oscars, and the actor experienced enormous backlash after decade-old anti-gay tweets surfaced.
Over the next few days, Hart continued to play the victim somewhat as he made the rounds of talk shows including his infamous “I’m over it” remark on the Ellen DeGeneres Show.
He eventually told listeners of his Sirius XM radio show, Straight From the Hart, “Once again, Kevin Hart apologizes for his remarks that hurt members of the LGBTQ community. I apologize.”
In the end, Hart stepped down from the hosting gig.
In his recent Netflix docuseries, Don’t F**k This Up, Hart addressed the debacle telling the TV audience, “I’m a firm believer in laying in the bed that you made. If there’s something that you did, then you did it. You know, there’s no wiggle room around it. You can address it, and then you can move on.”
Now, in a new interview with Men’s Health Magazine, Hart explains how he came to understand he didn’t handle the scandal well.
Hart says there was “a big gap between what I thought the problem was versus what the problem really was.”
“I got ten years where I made sure not to joke or play in the way that I did back then because it was a problem,” he continues. “I don’t care if you’re gay or not gay. I’m a people person. I’m going to love you regardless.”
Hart eventually realized he overlooked his opportunity to condemn hate speech and stand up for those people he said he loved.
“It wasn’t until close friends like Wanda Sykes, Lee Daniels, and Ellen [DeGeneres] talked to me and explained what they didn’t hear me say that I understood,” he tells Men’s Health. “Then I was like, ‘Oh, sh*t — I did f*ck up.’ ”
Takes some of us guys a while. Glad he finally got there.