Laura Benanti shared the stage with Zachary Levi and the beloved late Gavin Creel in the 2016 Broadway production of She Loves Me — though her experiences with her co-stars couldn’t have been more different.
During her recent appearance on That’s a Gay Ass Podcast this Wednesday (Dec. 04, 2024), the Tony Award winner spoke with remarkable honesty, expressing how she “never liked” the Chuck actor, particularly given the recent controversies surrounding his political views.
“Yeah, I never liked him. Everyone was like, ‘He’s so great,’ and I was like, ‘No, he’s not. He’s sucking up all the fucking energy in this room and he wants to mansplain everybody’s parts to them,'” Benanti recalled. “He really sucked everybody in with his dance party energy, like, ‘We’re doing a dance party at half-hour.’ I was like, ‘Good luck, have fun.'”
The tension between them wasn’t just about clashing personalities, as podcast host Eric Williams pointed out. The situation intensified when the Harold and the Purple Crayon star paid tribute to their former castmate Creel after his passing from cancer at 48 last September… by suggesting that COVID-19 vaccines might have triggered “turbo cancer” in him.
“I know that this is going to offend some people and make some people mad, and I wish it didn’t,” Levi said in an October Instagram Live video. “A few weeks ago, my friend Gavin Creel died. He was 48 years old, and he was one of the healthiest people I knew.”
“You better believe that, with everything in me, I believe that if these COVID vaccinations were not forced on the American public…” he then trailed off.
Responding to Levi’s stance on Wednesday, Benanti didn’t hold back: “For him to use Gavin’s memory — a person he was not friends with — to use his memory for his political agenda and to watch him try to make himself cry until he had one single tear, which he did not wipe away, I was like, ‘Fuck you forever.'”
She also observed how Levi’s embrace of conservative values might actually boost his career, contrary to what some might expect.
“And everyone’s like, ‘It’s career suicide.’ But it’s not career suicide, because Christian, faith-based TV and film is huge. He’s going to be a huge fucking star in that realm. He’s going to make more money than he ever has,” Benanti said. “It makes me nauseous, but also a little bit, like, ‘I told you, motherfuckers.'”
Interestingly, despite their apparent friction, Benanti and Levi collaborated again after their musical ended, working together on Tangled: Before Ever After in 2017 and appearing in two episodes of Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure.
LINK LOVE
 |  |  |
| People Think Anne Hathaway May Have Gotten Some Cosmetic Work on Her Face (Celebitchy) | OMG, He’s Naked: Jacob Elordi in ‘Oh, Canada’ (omg blog) | ‘SNL’ Alum Bill Hader Set to Drink the Kool-Aid (Pajiba) |
 |  |  |
| The Widow Longoria Returns (Go Fug Yourself) | Walton Goggins Covers CULTURED (Boy Culture) | Sam Nivola Covers VMAN (Kenneth in the 212) |
HOT DEALS
- Save 30% on Tony’s Chocolonely Chocolate Bar Variety Pack – Milk, Dark, Nougat, Caramel, Hazelnut, Almond & Sea Salt – 6 Individually Packed Bars! THis is Socialite Life’s FAVORITE chocolate. [Amazon]
- Save $15 on the Ninja 12-Cup Stainless Steel Coffee Maker. With 2 brew styles: Classic or Rich, each brew is flavorful and never bitter with custom brew strengths. [Walmart]
- Save $95 on the Arc’teryx women’s Thorium Hoody. Made for cold, dry conditions, this Arc’teryx hoodie delivers serious warmth. A combo of 750-fill-power grey goose down and synthetic Coreloft™ keeps you cozy and dry. [REI]
- Save 30% (using the FRIEND promo code) on the Fiesta Classic Rim 12 Pc. Dinnerware Set, Service For 4. [Macy’s]
- Save 30% on the JBL Go 4 Portable, Waterproof and Dustproof Bluetooth Speaker, Big Pro Sound with Punchy bass, 7-Hour Built-in Battery, Made in Part with Recycled Materials (Black). [Woot]
- Save 20% on the Silicone Luggage Tag with name ID card. Perfect to quickly spot your luggage! [Amazon]
- Save $100 on the Dyson Ball Animal 3 Extra Upright Vacuum. The best cleaning performance of any upright detangling vacuum.1 The Dyson Ball Animal 3 Extra deep cleans your whole home- and your pet. The vacuum tackles tough tasks easily, making it ideal for pet owners and parents. [Target]
- A Roku 65-inch TV for under $300 — onn. 65” Class 4K UHD (2160P) LED Roku Smart Television HDR. Roku Smart TV – wirelessly stream 500,000+ movies and TV episodes available across thousands of free or paid channels, conveniently presented through your own customizable home screen. [Walmart]
Like most websites, Socialite Life uses affiliate links where available, which means we earn a little commission if you click through and buy something. Also, as Amazon Influencers, we earn from qualifying purchases. Savings shown are those from the date and time of this article’s publication.
