Brian Cox slams anger outburst as “woke nonsense”
Brian Cox has slammed reports of an angry outburst he had during rehearsals for a play last year as “woke nonsense.”
The Scottish-born actor was speaking in a recent interview with The Times, in which he was asked to respond to claims that he was reported to the actors’ union Equity in 2024 over an outburst he had during rehearsals for the play A Long Day’s Journey Into Night.
He hit back: “It’s this whole woke nonsense. You can’t say boo to a goose. I mean, I just lost my temper and I said, ‘I’m not losing my temper at you. I’m losing my temper at me. I’m the one who’s having the problem, not you.’”
Cox compared his actions to a range of theatrical figures he learned from as he rose the ranks in the industry, many of whom displayed such angry temperaments and were involved in interactions that he claimed would not be acceptable today.
The actor’s fiery temper was seemingly corroborated by his former Succession co-star Sarah Snook, who previously said in an interview: “He has a habit of sometimes going into a false – or could it be real, who knows? – diabetic rage. I think part of it’s a little of trying to just jolt the energy of the set and rustle a few feathers, get it going and moving faster. The quality of his voice can be very terrifying sometimes. Thunderous.”
A range of other Succession stars have also confirmed this, with both Peter Friedman and J Smith-Cameron respectively saying that Cox’s anger can be “frightening,” “scary,” and “terrifying,” before the former then conceded that the actor is equally also “the nicest guy in the world.”
Cox is next set to return to his roots in the play Make It Happen, about the trials and tribulations faced by the Royal Bank of Scotland, which opens at the Dundee Rep Theatre from July 18th before transferring to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe from July 30th.
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