Richard Dreyfuss’ bigoted rant at ‘Jaws’ event had attendees walking out

Richard Dreyfuss allegedly railed against Barbra Streisand, women in film and transgender youth during the contentious event, audience members say.

Attendees complained that the 76-year-old actor railed against Barbra Streisand, women in film and the #MeToo movement before taking aim at transgender youth.

The event, billed as “An Evening with Richard Dreyfuss + Jaws Screening,” took place at The Cabot theatre in Beverly, Mass. — about 200 kilometres north of the iconic movie’s setting in Martha’s Vineyard. Dreyfuss starred as oceanographer Matt Hooper in the film.

After the Saturday event, The Cabot sent an email to all of its patrons apologizing for the “distressing and offensive” remarks made by Dreyfuss that night.

“We deeply regret that Mr. Dreyfuss’s comments during the event were not in line with the values of inclusivity and respect that we uphold at The Cabot,” the theatre wrote. “At The Cabot, we are committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive environment for all members of our community. The views expressed by Mr. Dreyfuss do not reflect our beliefs, and we do not endorse them in any way.”

The email had some Cabot patrons who didn’t attend the event scratching their heads. What did Dreyfuss say to cause such a reaction?

The event was not filmed, but short clips of Dreyfuss’ entrance on stage and some of the comments he made were posted online. Audience members have also been sounding off on social media, with some slamming the actor for his remarks and others coming to his defence.

“We walked out of his interview tonight along with hundred (sic) of others because of his racist homophobic mysogynistic (sic) rant,” one attendee wrote on The Cabot’s Facebook page.

“I am absolutely horrified to learn about Dreyfuss’s disgusting behavior tonight. His transphobic, homophobic, misogynistic rhetoric should have been shut down,” a similar comment reads.