Francia Raisa is speaking out following a controversial joke about Selena Gomez’s kidney transplant on the “Saved By The Bell” reboot.
Raisa donated one of her kidneys to her friend Gomez in 2017, who was suffering from complications due to lupus, an autoimmune disease. The episode of the series in question featured two characters debating over who gave a kidney to Gomez, debating whether it was Justin Bieber’s mom or Demi Lovato. Later in the episode, graffiti is scribbled on the wall saying, “Does Selena Gomez even have kidneys?”
“I was not offended by the dialogue that was said. I was offended by the spray paint written on the wall that said, ‘Does Selena Gomez even have kidneys’ and that just felt very dismissive to donors,” Raisa says in an interview on “The Talk”.
“It’s a tough process. It’s a tough decision, and I was just afraid that, you know, if anyone trying to donate is looking for a sign from God to not to do it, and I just felt like that could have potentially made a donor to say no, I don’t want to do this, I don’t want to get made fun of.”
A spokesperson for NBC apologized after the November episode aired saying it was “never our intention” to make a joke about Gomez’s surgery. The joke has since been edited out of the episode.
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However, Raisa says NBC’s apology could have gone further.
“I just wish NBC in their public apology would have addressed potential donors or the donors that felt offended, and not just Selena,” she says.
Raisa took to Twitter following the original airing of the episode to thank transplant donors.
As a kidney donor I want to show love and let other donors know that you are not alone. You are seen. You are appreciated. You are so brave and your selfless act is very much appreciated and valued! 🙏🏽
— Francia Raisa (@franciaraisa) November 28, 2020
“The Talk” airs weekdays on Global.
