Marlon Wayans says Jennifer Lopez is still Jenny from the block.
“From my experience, J.Lo blew up, and when I [see] her, it’s always love. Always,” Wayans, 52, said during a Thursday, September 5, appearance on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast. “She’s never been like, ‘Oh, I’m above you now.’ She’s never been like that.”
Wayans’ comments come after his and Lopez’s fellow In Living Color alum Tommy Davidson claimed during a December 2023 appearance on the same podcast that Lopez snubbed him at the height of her fame.
“I go over there and I’m like, ‘What’s up, girl? Man, you blew up. What is going on?’” Davidson, 60, recalled before miming Lopez’s chilly greeting while taking a bite of carrot dip. “I’m going, ‘What’s in that carrot dip? Because she’s sure dipping my ass.’”
Davidson added that his anecdote should not be taken as “J.Lo bashing” because his former costar is “crazy talented.”
Davidson starred on all five seasons of In Living Color, which ran from 1990 to 1994. Wayans was a featured cast member during season 4 of the sketch comedy series and Lopez was a member of the “Fly Girls” dance troupe for seasons 3 and 4. While Davidson has a story of Lopez allegedly dismissing him, Wayans credits her with landing him a role in the 2023 film Air.
“She told [her now estranged husband] Ben Affleck [to cast me]. He was like, ‘I need a good actor to do this role, and I want somebody good-looking to play George Raveling.’ And she said, ‘What about Marlon? He’s a great dramatic actor,’” Wayans recounted on Thursday. “And so Ben called me and was like, ‘Will you do this role in my movie?’ It was a great role, and I was like, ‘Bet!’”
Wayans added that he doesn’t hold it against Lopez when she doesn’t have time for him.
“It’s hard for everybody to always [want your] attention, especially when you [are] her [and] you [are] being pulled this way, you’re being pulled that way,” he explained. “So, I don’t take it personal. I just go, maybe [she’s] busy. I’ll hit her another time.”
Wayans isn’t the only person who has come to Lopez’s defense recently. Actress Eliza González took to her Instagram Story in June to condemn those laughing about Lopez canceling her This Is Me … Live tour.
“I have to say the level of bullying that this woman has received in the last few months is so disturbing and heartbreaking,” González, 34, wrote via her Instagram Story at the time. “How can you complain about someone being mean while enjoying being mean about them. People are humans, make mistakes and some have personal things happening while also having to be constantly perfect in the public eye.”
The tour cancellation came amid concerns about Lopez and Affleck’s marriage. Lopez filed for divorce on August 20, two years to the day after the pair’s second wedding ceremony in Savannah, Georgia.
