Tina Fey addressed a controversial element of her Netflix series "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" in a new interview with Net-a-Porter, everyone's favorite purveyor of $70 candles.
"Steer clear of the Internet and you'll live forever," Fey said, going on to explain, "We did an 'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt' episode, and the Internet was in a whirlwind, calling it 'racist,' but my new goal is not to explain jokes."
The episode in question portrayed Jane Krakowski -- very white and blonde -- as a delightfully out-of-touch society woman hiding her Native American heritage. Some viewers felt the casting was insensitive, and the storyline unnecessary. The series' co-creator Robert Carlock defended Krakowski's character at the time, telling the audience at the 2015 Television Critics Association press tour that they'd had "a couple of writers on staff with Native American heritage," and thus felt justified in their creative decision. But it didn't stop the criticism.
Now, Fey is taking herself out of the discussion that her work prompts, letting it simply stand for itself -- for better or for worse.
"I feel like we put so much effort into writing and crafting everything, [the jokes] need to speak for themselves. There's a real culture of demanding apologies, and I'm opting out of that," she told the site, which considers a $380 silk brooch a stocking stuffer.
Whether or not art demands explanation has long been a point of debate, and we suppose that extends even to jokes about dream catchers.
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