Amy Schumer has responded to the "cyberbullying" accusations over her now-deleted photo of Nicole Kidman.
As previously reported, the 42-year-old comedian was accused of mocking the Eyes Wide Shut star after taking to Instagram to share a snapshot of Kidman at the US Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York.
In the now-deleted photo, the Oscar-winning star was seen intensely watching the women's final match between Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka, which took place on September 9.
Kidman - who donned a pink dress and white jacket for the sports occasion - was highly invested in the match as her hand was resting underneath her chin.
Two days later, the Trainwreck actress poked fun at the Big Little Lies as she captioned the Instagram post: "This how humans sit." However, her post was quickly flooded with disgruntled users accusing her of "bullying" the award-winning star.
Per Page Six, one person asked: "Are you cyberbullying Oscar and Emmy winner Nicole Kidman right now," while another said: "Bringing others down is always a sign of our own internal insecurities anyway, so the critics here should hold a mirror."
A third fan scolded Schumer in the comments about the joke. "Have always thought you were funny, seen all your specials, movies, read your book. But this selective mean girl public trolling stuff? No thanks," they stated.
After deleting the photo due to the criticism on the social media platform, the Life & Beth actress shared an apology post - which she later deleted as well.
In her apology, she seemingly joked that she posted the picture of The Invasion star because she looked like "an alien," stating: "I want to apologize to all the people I hurt posting a photo of Nicole Kidman and alluding to her being an alien."
The comic then appeared to reference the video made by Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis apologizing after they wrote character letters to their "dear friend" and convicted rapist Danny Masterson.
"I will be asking the cast of That '70s Show to write letters advocating for my forgiveness," she said in the now-deleted post, adding the hashtag "#takingtimetoheal."
Now, it looks like the stand-up comedian has decided to clarify her "joke" about Kidman in an Instagram post shared last night (September 16).
Schumer posted a screenshot from her notes app which read: "Okay so the joke I was making was the way she was posed didn’t seem like how a human sits. I was not making fun of how she looks."
She said her intention was harmless, adding that she believes the film producer to be "beautiful and one of the most incredible actors of all time".
In the accompanying caption, the actress further elaborated on her point and condemned the attention surrounding the joke amid all other news.
"I hope everyone is okay and takes a deep breath including all of the think pieces written on this. You guys good?" she questioned. "To all of the people who commented on me. I’m so sorry I’m not prettier. Please forgive me. I apologize."
She then expressed her shock over her words seemingly attracting more attention than the "deadly storms sweeping the world," the "man who was convicted of rape" (which seemed to be about Danny Masterson), or the fact that "North Korea and Russia are getting too close for comfort".
"But what got your goat was me saying that Nicole Kidman’s pose was not human-like," she remarked, before urging everyone to “breathe y’all" and saying she forgives the people who have written "hateful things" on her page because she, too, "likes hot goss[IP]."
The response sparked a flood of support for Amy, with presenter Howie Mandel commenting: "You should never be put in a position to explain comedy. You are and always have been a treasure. A sense of humor is hard to come by. Anybody who doesn’t get you is missing out on this treasure you constantly share. You shouldn’t ever feel you have to defend yourself for their inability to understand and enjoy."
And another fan replied: "It was very clear that it was a joke, and what the joke was. It wasn’t mean spirited at all. People are out of control."
