Following the revelation of racially tinged emails mocking U.S. President Barack Obama's imagined movie tastes, Sony Pictures Entertainment's movie chief and one of its top producers released a public apology on Thursday.
After posting emails in which Sony co-chairman Amy Pascal and producer Scott Rudin labelled Angelina Jolie as a "minimally talented spoiled brat", the hackers shared a series of emails on Thursday in which Rudin and Pascal mocked President Obama.
"The content of my emails were insensitive and inappropriate but are not an accurate reflection of who I am...although this was a private communication that was stolen, I accept full responsibility for what I wrote and apologize to everyone who was offended," said Pascal, Variety reports.
Pascal reportedly gave her statement to Deadline after almost a week after the hackers made the emails public. She said that she did not comment earlier because the hacking episode was bigger than the reveals. She added that not only hers but the privacy of everyone in the company had been violated.
"There are people here that I work with I love, and I don't want them to be disappointed in me. I am mostly disappointed in myself. That is the element of this that has been most painful for me. I don't want to be defined by these emails, after a 30 year career; I was even willing to let it all happen," she said.
Meanwhile, Rudin says: "Private emails between friends and colleagues written in haste and without much thought or sensitivity, even when the content of them is meant to be in jest, can result in offense where none was intended. I made a series of remarks that were meant only to be funny, but in the cold light of day, they are in fact thoughtless and insensitive — and not funny at all. To anybody I've offended, I'm profoundly and deeply sorry, and I regret and apologize for any injury they might have caused."
Pascal and Rudin were consulting each other about what all they could discuss with the President on the eve of a fundraising breakfast that they were going to attend at the home of DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg in October 2013.
The objectionable content of the emails include the two discussing President Obama's choice of movies depending on his background.
"Should I ask him if he liked DJANGO?" Pascal asked Rudin referring to the 2012 Quentin Tarantino film 'Django Unchained'.
Rudin, in his response, referred to another slavery film saying: "12 years."
The pair kept on listing films that starred black actors including Lee Daniels' "The Butler" and two Kevin Hart movies, "Think Like a Man" and "Ride Along".
At one point, Rudin also says : "I bet he likes Kevin Hart."
