Jamie Foxx has returned to the spotlight following his health scare several months ago and is now getting backlash from some about a cryptic message he posted.
The 55-year-old actor brought up “Jesus” and “fake friends” in a post uploaded on Friday, prompting many to suggest his remarks were antisemitic.
However, Foxx later clarified his message and apologized to the Jewish community for his “choice of words.”
Foxx’s original Instagram Story post, a black background with white text, said, “They Killed This Dude Name Jesus…What Do You Think They’ll Do To You???!”
He accompanied the bold all-caps message with the hashtags #fakefriends and #fakelove below it.
While the slide no longer appears on Foxx’s Instagram Story, various social media users captured and reposted screenshots, such as the Twitter account below.
Foxx issued an apology to the Jewish community for his post
On Saturday afternoon, Foxx shared an all-text post on his Instagram page in which he apologized to “the Jewish community” and all those offended by his previous IG Story post.
“I now know my choice of words have caused offense and I’m sorry. That was never my intent,” he said, adding, “To clarify, I was betrayed by a fake friend and that’s what I meant with ‘they’ not anything more.”
“I love and support the Jewish community. My deepest apologies to anyone who was offended,” he wrote, ending his apology with “Nothing but love always, Jamie Foxx” and several emojis.
Foxx’s initial IG Story post and the apology he followed it with arrived one week after the actor appeared in his first social media video update about his April health scare, hospitalization, and recovery progress.
The actor explained he “went to hell and back” but was thankful for his daughter and sister for helping him, and also expressed gratitude for his friends, fans, and family for their love and support through his recovery.
As of this writing, Foxx is reportedly continuing “outpatient” treatment at a rehabilitation facility in Chicago, Illinois, so he is no longer staying there. In July, he was seen in public for the first time in months, as he was spotted in several places in the city.
Foxx spoke about his religion with Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Two years ago, Foxx appeared in an interview with Joseph Gordon-Levitt for Wired, where they answered the most searched questions about them on the internet.
At one point, a question asked if Foxx was vegan, and he brought up his religion and that he’s Baptist.
“I’ve been Baptist my whole life. To me, Jesus is the foundation—nothing against other vegans. I don’t know where they go as far as heaven and hell is concerned, but I know where I’m going as far as heaven and hell is concerned,” the actor said.
“It’s about Jesus, nothing against Vegans, but we are going to heaven over here,” Foxx said.
Following Foxx’s answer, a question arrived asking what Gordon-Levitt’s ethnicity is, and he responded, “100 percent Ashkenazi Jew.”
“Oh, man. I thought you were going to say African American. Anyway,” Foxx joked.
Regarding entertainment projects, Foxx appears in They Cloned Tyrone, released in July on Netflix. As of this writing, the film holds a 94 percent aggregate review score on Rotten Tomatoes.
He’ll next be featured in the live-action R-rated dog comedy Strays, providing his voice to a character named Bug. The movie arrives in theaters on Friday, August 18.