Alice Wetterlund's Tweets About TJ Miller and Silicon Valley
Alice Wetterlund Calls Working With T.J. Miller on Silicon Valley "a Nightmare"
Alice Wetterlund's onscreen work as rockstar engineer Carla Walton in seasons two and three of Silicon Valley earned her plenty of fans, but the actress and comedian recently opened up about what her offscreen experience working on the HBO comedy was really like. In short: T.J. Miller made being there a "nightmare," and his male costars didn't do anything to help the boys' club atmosphere.
Disturbing physical and sexual assault claims were made against Miller in 2017, resulting in his Comedy Central show being cancelled and his presence being wiped from the press tours for films like Ready Player One. He also earned a reputation for giving combative interviews, and was arrested in April after making a false bomb threat aboard an Amtrak train. An investigation from The Hollywood Reporter also revealed that Miller had been let go from Mike Judge's HBO series after he repeatedly showed up to work under the influence and displayed "explosive" behaviour on set.
Despite the allegations against him and his overall behaviour, Miller has continued to be booked on on comedy shows like Kurt Braunohler and Kristen Schaal's Hot Tub With Kurt & Kristen and Doug Benson's podcast Doug Loves Movies. Criticism about his inclusion on the shows drew criticism from people in the industry on Twitter, including Wetterlund.
Yes! It is definitely time to rehabilitate TJ Miller's career! We can't afford to lose talent at a time like this, we need more—not less—comedic hijinks such as *checks notes* calling in a fake bomb threat
— Alice Wetterlund (@alicewetterlund) July 17, 2018
After making a sarcastic joke about his antics, Wetterlund responded to a tweet about how the user was "confused" that she'd be criticizing Miller after working with him on the show, which is when she candidly recounted her experience.
Thank you! I hope to not ruin it for you, but TJ Miller was a bully and petulant brat and pretty much everyone who had any power on that (almost all male) set, including the male cast members, enabled him and were complicit in his unprofessionalism. They can fuck off forever. https://t.co/YxGHiSYMrJ
— Alice Wetterlund (@alicewetterlund) July 18, 2018
I'm pretty open about this, and I don't know if other women on the show had a different experience than me, but it was kind of a nightmare.
— Alice Wetterlund (@alicewetterlund) July 18, 2018
Not a dumb question. One, I needed the job, two, it was my first recurring role and I had no idea it wasn't always toxic and weird. Now I know!
— Alice Wetterlund (@alicewetterlund) July 18, 2018
Although her description of Miller's unprofessional actions on the set is nothing new, Wetterlund's assertion that the "all-male" set and male actors on the show enabled his behaviour is. After learning of Wetterlund's claims, HBO gave a statement to Variety:
"While this is the first time we have heard Alice Wetterlund comment on her experiences on Silicon Valley we are disappointed to learn of her concerns. HBO and the producers have always taken very seriously our responsibility to create a welcoming and congenial environment for everyone who works on the show."
