On Monday’s (November 21st) episode of The Verywell Mind podcast, Kevin Hart spoke with licensed therapist Amy Morin about “cancel culture” and having the opportunity to learn from one’s mistakes. Hart faced backlash in 2018 for resurfaced homophobic tweets he once shared, after he was chosen to host the 2019 Academy Awards.
Morin asked Hart if he felt he had to be “more careful” with his jokes in “the world of ‘cancel culture."” The Jumanji actor replied, “Absolutely.” He explained, “Let's be honest, I think there was a lot of changes that were needed and necessary, right? And I think being aware is something we should all prioritize. Just being aware. We're learning to better understand each other, and in doing so, respect should be attached to that.”
Hart believes social media has introduced a “heightened level of sensitivity” and a “heightened level of opinion.” He continued, “So now the things we didn't hear on a regular basis you are hearing. The conversations you may not have been aware of, well, you are hearing because they're all happening in real time.”
The Me Time actor also commented on how we need to make space for people to learn from their mistakes. “We're forgetting that there has to be a world that presents the opportunity to improve. Without that, what the f—? Where do we go?” he said. “If everything is deemed bad once it's done and there is no other thing that you can do because you did the thing and that's it for you, well, what the hell? … You have to make the mistakes to learn and to basically have real-life examples of what you're supposed to grow from.”