Moment Lily Tomlin storms off set after a male actor describes his spouse as an ‘animal he owns’ in resurfaced clip as viewers reward Saoirse Ronan for highly effective reminder about misogyny
A clip of Lily Tomlin storming off during an interview has resurfaced after Saoirse Ronan’s powerful reminder about misogyny.
American-born Irish actress Ronan, 30, left the all-male panel – which included actors Denzel Washington, Paul Mescal and Eddie Redmayne – in stunned silence after she interjected during a joke about self-defence during an interview on The Graham Norton Show last Thursday.
As the rest of the panel laughed about using a phone to retaliate during an attack, Ronan reduced them to a stunned silence by commenting: ‘That’s what girls have to think about all the time.’
‘Am I right, ladies?’ she then asked the crowd, eliciting a huge round of applause from the studio audience.
Saoirse’s remark has sparked much debate online, and people were quick to draw comparisons to a 1972 interview featuring Lily Tomlin and Chad Everett.
A clip of Lily Tomlin storming off during an interview has resurfaced in the wake of Saoirse Ronan’s feminist moment
Ronan, 30, has gone viral in recent days for giving men a reality check about women’s self-defence during an interview on The Graham Norton Show
In the clip from the Dick Cavett Show, actress and comedian Tomlin stormed off set after Everett described his wife as an ‘animal’ he ‘owned’.
Everett, who passed away from lung cancer in 2012, said: ‘I have three horses, three dogs and a wife. She’s the most beautiful animal I own.’
After a stunned silence, Tomlin responded: ‘You own? I have to leave’ and stormed out to a mixture of laughter and applause.
Everett said: ‘That was a disturbing thing to do,’ before shouting: ‘Lily come on! The joke’s over.’
Meanwhile Cavett said Lily was sure to return in ‘ten seconds’, and told Everett ‘I’m sorry she did that.’
The clip has gained one million views on Twitter since resurfacing, with many seeing Tomlin’s reaction as a timely parallel to Ronan’s.
Posting on X/Twitter wrote, one user wrote: ‘The recent saoirse ronan clip got me thinking about when lily tomlin walked off mid interview when a fellow actor referred to his wife as “the most beautiful animal i own” and honestly good for her !!’;
“lily come on.. the joke’s over” oh i know he was embarrassed’;
In a 1972 interview on the Dick Cavett Show, Chad Everett (pictured) said his wife was ‘the most beautiful animal I own’
The clip has gained one million views on Twitter since resurfacing, with many seeing Tomlin’s reaction as a timely parallel to Ronan’s
‘”gee that was a disturbing thing to do” oh but not more than calling your wife an animal’;
‘“I have to leave” using this line forever now’;
‘And here I thought I couldn’t love Lily Tomlin any more than I already do. I stand corrected.’
Everett, whose real name was Raymon Lee Cramton, died in 2012 from lung cancer aged 75.
He was most famous for playing Dr Joe Gannon in the drama Medical Center. Tomlin, who is now 85, is still active in the acting industry, recently starring in Moving On (2022) and 80 For Brady (2023).
During Ronan’s interview, Redmayne, 42, explained that amid his training for The Day of the Jackal, an upcoming Peacock miniseries, he received instruction as how to use a phone to retaliate in the event of an attack.
A guffawing Mescal, 28, added, ‘Who is actually going to think about that? If someone actually attacked me, I’m not going to go “phone.”‘
Giggling Norton, 61, mimicked holding a phone to fend off an assailant, saying, ‘Can you hold on a second?’ to which Redmayne said, ‘That’s a very good point.’
Ronan’s remarks came as Redmayne explained that amid his training for The Day of the Jackal, he received instruction as how to use a phone in a manner of self-defense
The Oscar-nominated actress then found a moment to share her perspective, saying: ‘That’s what girls have to think about all the time.’
The brutally honest comment prompted a moment of silence from the panel.
‘Am I right, ladies?’ she then asked the crowd, eliciting a huge round of applause from the studio audience.
Ronan – who says she would like to play a Bond villain – garnered further plaudits on social media, as people lauded her for speaking up in the situation.
Said one user: ‘Saoirse Ronan gagging men we love to see it.’
Another called Ronan ‘a queen,’ saying that ‘men need a reminder what it’s like being a woman so they can appreciate their privilege.
The user noted that ‘the silence after she said that speaks volumes,’ while another said ‘the silence is taking me out.’
A separate user said that the clip ‘encapsulates men being ignorant of male privilege in a nutshell.
Saoirse Ronan, 30, is garnering plaudits for her comments on a recent edition of The Graham Norton Show
The American-born Irish actress pointed out the dangers women face during Thursday’s edition, in which she appeared with fellow actors Denzel Washington, 69, Paul Mescal, 28, and Eddie Redmayne, 42
‘The fact that these guys – nice guys, mind – are just so unaware is almost terrifying,’ the user said. ‘Thank goodness for Saoirse though because we all need a bit more attention drawn to this.’
Said one user: ‘I admire Saoirse Ronan so much – when she mentions how women have to think constantly how to defend ourselves from attack and everyone goes quiet and then cheers. She’s so right!’
One user said the moment was a microcosm of how men and women communicate, saying that ‘this is what it feels like to have any convo with men ever.’
Another user said that tone deafness in regards to the gender issue was evident in the excerpt from the popular British talk show.
‘The thing that angered me the most is that Saoirse Ronan, the only woman on the panel, had to almost fight to make her point amongst a group of laughing men who didn’t consider her input or the experiences of women,’ the user said. ‘Almost as if that’s the entire f***ing problem isn’t it?’
Ronan is currently promoting her war drama film Blitz, which is slated to be released in theaters November 1 before streaming on Apple TV+ November 22.
Ronan garnered further plaudits on social media, as people lauded her for speaking up in the situation
The movie also stars Elliott Heffernan, Harris Dickinson, Benjamin Clémentine, Kathy Burke, Paul Weller and Stephen Graham.
Blitz, written and directed by Steven McQueen, ‘follow the stories of a group of Londoners during the events of the British capital bombing in World War II,’ a logline for the film reads.
Ronan portrays a woman named named Rita who is raising her son George, nine, (Heffernan) amid the tumultuous time.
