Drew Barrymore is standing by her fellow Angel.
During an interview with Danny Pellegrino for The Drew Barrymore Show, the 46-year-old actress spoke about the rumored dispute between Lucy Liu and Bill Murray on the set of their 2000 movie Charlie's Angels.
While word of a clash spread over a decade ago, Liu recently addressed the reports during a July interview with L.A. Times' Asian Enough podcast. The 52-year-old actress, who played Alex in the film, said there was a time when a scene was reworked to "make it more fluid" and that the 71-year-old actor, who portrayed Bosley, couldn't be there that day because he had "some family gathering." When the cast and crew later came together to rehearse and mark the scene, she said Murray started to "hurl insults." Liu explained she didn't think he was talking to her initially. But as she put it, "clearly he was, because then it started to become, like, a one-on-one communication."
"You know, if you confront me, I will attack and that's exactly what happened because it was unjust and it was uncalled for and some of the language was inexcusable and unacceptable, and I was not going to just sit there and take it," Liu noted. "So, yes, I stood up for myself, and I don't regret it. Because no matter how low on the totem pole you may be or wherever you came from, there's no need to condescend or to put other people down. And I would not stand down, and nor should I have and nor did I."
Barrymore said she made a video after Liu spoke out to "back her up" but that her former co-star told her she didn't need it.
"What really happened was Bill was just in a—you know, comedians can be a little dark sometimes, and he just came in in a bad mood," she shared. "And what you have to know is how much Lucy stood up for herself and that was the great thing that came out of an unfortunate circumstance. She literally said, ‘I do not accept that kind of behavior from you.' And we all supported her and backed her up and we moved forward."
While Barrymore said Murray's behavior was initially directed at the team in "general," she also said he then "zeroed in" on Liu
"In the workplace, it is so important that we respect each other and if you don't feel you're being respected to speak up for yourself and to have people around you say, 'I back this person,'" she continued. "But I respected her then, I respect her now. I'm proud of us as a team and a company that we didn't tiptoe on the eggshells. We dealt with it right then and there, we were strong, and we moved forward and we didn't accept anything less moving forward."
During the podcast, Liu noted she had the support of her team and that she has "nothing against Bill Murray at all."
"I've seen him since then at an SNL reunion and he came up to me and was perfectly nice," she said, "but I'm not going to sit there and be attacked."
E! News reached out to Murray's attorney for comment at the time of Liu's interview but did not hear back. The Lost in Translation alum did, however, address the incident during a 2009 interview with the Times of London.
"Look, I will dismiss you completely if you are unprofessional and working with me," he said, per Entertainment Weekly, later adding, "When our relationship is professional, and you're not getting that done, forget it."