Alyssa Milano shuts down blackface allegations as Snooki parody resurfaces

Actor said she was victim of a ‘smear campaign’

Alyssa Milano parodies Snooki (Funny or Die)

Alyssa Milano has denied allegations that she wore blackface in a 2013 parody clip.

Some social media users accused the actor of using blackface in a Funny or Die video, in which she was wearing a lot of fake tan and impersonating Chilean-American reality star Nicole Elizabeth LaValle, who is known by her nickname "Snooki".

Responding to her critics on Twitter, Milano wrote: “Hey, a*******. The below picture is me parodying Jersey Shore and Snooki’s tan.

“Snooki’s tan (she is a sweetheart by the way) is worthy of parodying as is Trump’s ‘tan’.”

She added: “So go f*** yourselves with your smear campaign.”

Under her tweet, the star posted a link to the video, which sees her transform into an exaggerated version of Snooki, saying that her tan had been manipulated to “distort” perceptions of New Jersey, where the MTV show is set.

The sketch is a parody of a Dove advert that showed how the beauty industry manipulates images to set unrealistic beauty standards.

Since the renewed fight against racism that has emerged in the wake of George Floyd’s death, many celebrities have apologised publicly for their historic use of blackface, including Matt Lucas, David Walliams and Ant and Dec.