Mo’Nique has weighed in on Oprah Winfrey’s controversial comments about Whitney Houston, calling the remarks “unfair” because the late singer can’t defend herself.
Earlier this week, Winfrey made global headlines when she told the audience at an event in France that Houston was “back on drugs” when she “fell off the stage” during an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2009.
The backlash was swift — with Houston’s fans and the music legend’s estate accusing Winfrey of going too far by bringing up the previously unknown incident.
Now, the TV mogul is getting pushback from a familiar voice — longtime critic Mo’Nique.
Related: Oprah Dragged After Sharing ‘Tacky’ Story About Whitney Houston
On the latest episode of the “My Husband is My Best Friend” podcast, the Oscar-winning Precious star said it’s not right to speak negatively about someone who is no longer alive.
“You gotta play fair,” Mo’Nique said. “I will not speak of a person, about any conversation, about any incidents, about anything that they cannot say yes or no to because when you do that, that becomes unfair to the dead.”
While Mo’Nique did not initially mention Winfrey by name, the hosts followed up by asking her thoughts on the media mogul’s recent comments.
Mo’Nique suggested the talk show icon was being hypocritical, and reminded the hosts that the daytime TV legend tumbled down herself, during a 2020 wellness event in Los Angeles.
“Didn’t Oprah fall on stage? We didn’t see how she tripped or anything, she just went down,” Mo’Nique said. “She was talking and then, bam!”
Winfrey told the audience her shoes were to blame, but Mo’Nique questioned the explanation, saying it made no sense.
She wasn’t finished and added one final message for Winfrey.
“Now you just want everybody to take your word because you’re the great Oprah Winfrey,” she said. “I believe that’s unfair. And I still love my sister, Oprah Winfrey, let me be clear about that.”
The comedian’s criticism of the OWN network founder comes after years of public tension between the two. She called Winfrey a “gatekeeper” in a 2024 interview. Seven years earlier, Mo’Nique told the audience at a 2017 stand-up performance that Precious producers Winfrey and Tyler Perry could “suck my d–k, if I had one.”
In a statement released on June 23, Houston’s estate took aim at Winfrey as well.
“Whitney absolutely fell off stage, but it was during a sound check and it was due to the darkness of the area and her unfamiliarity with the stage,” executor Pat Houston said. “She was absolutely not high.”
You can listen to the podcast interview here.
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