00:00After revealing that he almost took his own life in the wake of brutal criticism of his
00:04Star Wars character Jar Jar Binks, actor Ahmed Best says that he is overwhelmed by the
00:08amount of support and kindness he has received. Although he did not name the franchise in his
00:12first post, Best wrote that it was coming up on 20 years since he faced a resentment
00:16that still affects my career today. Star Wars Episode I The Phantom Menace was released in
00:211999 and it marked Best's first major role in a film. The actor said that he contemplated
00:26suicide because of the hatred aimed at him. Numerous fans online rushed to make sure Best
00:31knew he did a great job with the character, who appeared in three prequels.
00:34Thank you all for your love and kindness, Best wrote on social media in response.
00:38It's been overwhelming. One of those who reached out to say how much he enjoyed Jar Jar
00:43was none other than Star Wars icon Frank Oz.
00:45I loved Jar Jar Binks, the other actor said on Twitter. I know I'll get raked over the coals
00:51for saying that, but I just will never understand the harshness of people's dislike of him.
00:55I do character work. He is a great character. Best is the latest, but certainly not the first
01:00Star Wars actor to reveal how horrendously some fans of the franchise have treated him
01:04because they did not like the character. Last month, Last Jedi actress Kelly Marie Tran
01:08left social media over the abuse she had to endure from those who did not like her character
01:12Rose in the latest film. Mark Hamill and writer-director Rian Johnson were among those
01:17who came to her defense and said fans were getting out of control with their contempt for a movie.
01:21Daisy Ridley, who plays Ray in the new installments, deleted her social media accounts in 2016
01:26after sparking criticism for posting about gun control. In an interview with Glamour,
01:30Ridley said,
01:31As for Bess, the actor and musician has been posting about possibly performing a one-man show
01:47timed to the anniversary of Phantom Menace, tweeting,
01:52To read more on this story, head to THR.com. For The Hollywood Reporter News, I'm Lyndsey Rodrigues.
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