Hartley Sawyer: The Flash actor fired from CW series over racist and sexist tweets

Among the tweets were: ‘Outside of the 7-11 where I assaulted my girlfriend lol’

Actor Hartley Sawyer has been fired from his long-running role on the superhero series The Flash after racist and sexist tweets resurfaced.

In a statement, the show’s executive producer Eric Wallace confirmed that Sawyer would not be returning to the series. Sawyer has played superhero Elongated Man on the show since 2017.

“Concerning [Sawyer’s] social media tweets, they broke my heart and made me mad as hell,” Wallace wrote. “And they’re indicative of the larger problem in our country. I am committed to bringing permanent change to the work environment here on The Flash.

“I will continue to find Black and Brown writers, directors, actors and producers of all genders to help tell Flash stories. Their stories are part of the American narrative, too, and must be heard. And the more you hear and see us, the more you will begin to recognise one simple fact: We’re human beings, too.”

A number of screenshots of since-deleted tweets by Sawyer have been shared across social media in recent weeks. They have included jokes about rape and sexual harassment, as well as racist statements.

Tweets unearthed included: “Outside of the 7-11 where I assaulted my girlfriend lol”, and “Out at dinner and just exposed myself as a racist again”.

Sawyer apologised for the tweets on his Instagram in May, writing: “My words, irrelevant of being meant with an intent of humour, were hurtful, and unacceptable. I am ashamed I was capable of these really horrible attempts to get attention at that time.

“I regret them deeply. This was not acceptable behaviour. These were words I threw out at the time with no thought or recognition of the harm my words could do, and now have done today.”

Prior to his work on The Flash, Sawyer appeared in the sitcoms Suburgatory and Don’t Trust the B in Apartment 23 and the US soap opera The Young and the Restless.