Second State Theater Blasts Jesse Williams Nude Video Leak From ‘Take Me Out’

Nude scenes of Jesse Williams in Broadway’s Take Me Out leaked in a video online on Monday night.

The leak came out the same day that Williams received a Tony nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actor for his role as Darren Lemming, a gay baseball player who comes out at the pinnacle of his successful career. It surrounds the personal and professional challenges he faces.

Nude scenes for Williams and other actors are a part of the show as some of the scenes take place in locker room showers. Second Stage Theater enacted a no phone rule “out of respect and support for our actors and in order to create a phone-free space.”

“We are appalled that this policy has been violated and unauthorized footage of our acting company has been posted. It is deeply unfortunate that one audience member chose to disrespect the production, their fellow audience members, and, most importantly, the cast in this manner,” the theater said in a statement.

They reported that they are working to get the images taken down and will be more strongly enforcing the no phone rule for future shows.

The Actors’ Equity Association also responded to the leak by strongly condemning the audience member for taking and releasing the photos.

“As actors, we regularly agree to be vulnerable on stage in order to tell difficult and challenging stories,” read a statement from Kate Shindle, the president of the AEA. “This does not mean that we agree to have those vulnerable moments widely shared by anyone who feels like sneaking a recording device into the theater.”