Celebrities are leaving Twitter in the aftermath of Elon Musk’s acquisition.
Shonda Rhimes, a screenwriter, producer, and showrunner, tweeted on Saturday: “Not hanging around for whatever Elon has planned. Bye.”
Rhimes is one of numerous people who have abandoned the site in recent days.
It comes following online talk in April, when some stars promised to leave the platform when Musk’s takeover concluded, expressing concerns about what the billionaire would do as CEO.
There has been an increase in hate speech on the site since Musk closed the $44 billion transaction.
According to one study, the use of the N-word on Twitter spiked by approximately 500% in the 12 hours following the takeover.
Musk, a self-described “free speech absolutist,” has already announced the formation of a new “content moderation committee” for Twitter, which will bring together opposing viewpoints.
Now, some celebrities are following through on their promises to leave Twitter.
Shonda Rhimes
The “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Bridgerton” creator said on Saturday she was exiting the platform. Rhimes tweeted that she wasn’t planning to hang around “for whatever Elon has planned.”
Sara Bareilles
The Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter also said she quit the platform over the weekend. Bareilles tweeted on Sunday: “Welp. It’s been fun Twitter. I’m out. See you on other platforms, peeps. Sorry, this one’s just not for me.”
Ken Olin
Olin, an executive producer on the Emmy-award-winning show “This Is Us,” also said he was leaving the social media app. He posted a tweet on Friday, saying: “I’m out of here. No judgment.”
Brian Koppelman
Koppelman, the “Billions” showrunner, also closed his account. He told his Twitter followers to follow him on Instagram and TikTok instead.
He said: “Y’all’s, for real, come find me over on instagram and the tok. Gonna really try to take a breather from here for a minute or a month come deal close time.”