It appears Orlando Jones won't return for Season 3 of American Gods.
On Saturday, the comedian/actor shared a video claiming he was fired from the Starz series over concerns about his character Mr. Nancy—the African trickster God also known as Anansi. Jones said Season 3 showrunner, Charles Eglee, terminated him back in September, citing concerns over the message Mr. Nancy was sending to black America.
"There will be no more Mr. Nancy. Don't let these motherfuckers tell you they love Mr. Nancy. They don't," Jones said in the video. "I’m not going to name names but the new Season 3 showrunner is Connecticut born and Yale-educated, so he's very smart and he thinks that Mr. Nancy's angry, get-shit-done [attitude] is the wrong message for black America. That’s right. This white man sits in that decision-making chair and I'm sure he has many black bffs who are his advisers and made it clear to him that if he did not get rid of that angry God Mr. Nancy he'd start a Denmark Vesey uprising in this country. I mean, what else could it be?"
Denmark Vesey was a self-educated, freed slave who was convicted of plotting a massive slave revolt in Charleston, South Carolina.
Jones tweeted a correction hours later, stating he was fired in 2019, not 2018. The tweet also took aim at American Gods' production company Fremantle USA: "@FremantleUS is a nightmare. They treated you like a 2nd class citizen for doing your job to well. Stay tuned. More to come. #AngryGetsShitDone." Jones @ed a number of celebrities who have had similar issues, including Gabrielle Union, who was reportedly fired from America's Got Talent after she spoke out against the toxic work enviornment.
Union replied to Jones' post, stating: "... let's chat my friend.
On Saturday evening, a spokesperson for American Gods responded to Jones' claims with a few corrections.
“The storylines of American Gods have continually shifted and evolved to reflect the complex mythology of the source material. Mr. Jones’ option was not picked up because Mr. Nancy, among other characters, is not featured in the portion of the book we are focusing on within Season 3,” the statement read. “Several new characters, many of which have already been announced, will be introduced into Shadow Moon’s world that will further contribute to the show’s legacy as one of the most diverse series on television.”
American Gods is a TV adaptation of Neil Gaiman's 2001 fantasy novel of the same name. Jones, who appeared in the show's first two seasons, became a writer and producer for the show in Season 2, after original showrunners, Bryan Fuller and Michael Gree exited.
In the video, Jones made sure to thank Gaiman, Fuller, and Gree for all their support. The latter two responded with kind words.
