Matthew Morrison has allegedly revealed the private message he sent a So You Think You Can Dance contestant that got him fired, claiming allegations he was "flirty" and "inappropriate" are "blatantly untrue."
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However, according to Matthew, he only sent the female dancer a single message intended to help get her a job as a choreographer on the show.
Matthew captioned a video, "Just to clarify," and began, "It's really unfortunate that I have to sit here and defend myself and my family against blatantly untrue statements made anonymously, but I have nothing to hide."
"So, in the interest of transparency, I will read to you the one message I wrote to a dancer on the show."
Matthew alleged that the message read: "Hey, it's Matthew. If you don't mind, would love to get your number and talk you through some things."
"The end," he continued. "I sent this because this dancer and I both share a mutual respect for a choreographer that I've known for over 20 years and I was trying to help her get a job as a choreographer on the show."
Matthew's video did not offer any explanation for why his message told the dancer he would like to "talk you through some things" instead of clearly stating he was trying to help her get a job as a choreographer.
Nor did he offer any acknowledgement that "love to get your number" is also a common pickup line that could have easily been misconstrued by the female dancer and others.
The People source, who claimed to be close to the Fox reality show, claimed earlier this week that Matthew had "an inappropriate relationship with a female contestant."
"They didn't have sex, but he reached out to her through flirty direct messages on social media," the source said.
"She felt uncomfortable with his line of comments and went to producers, who then got Fox involved. He was fired after they did their own investigation."
The source alleged Matthew and the unidentified female contestant "never met up off-set" but his messages definitely "crossed the line."
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Matthew -- a husband and father of two toddler children, son Revel James and daughter Phoenix Monroe -- said in his Thursday Instagram post that the allegations against him are "devastating."
"It's devastating that we live in this world where gossip rules and people's lives are being thrown around as clickbait," Matthew complained.
"I think this is much bigger than me and this story. Gossip is toxic and it is destroying our society, and we need to do better."
Matthew said "in no way" does he want this scandal "to take away from the show."
"Because dance has always been a unifying and healing modality, and I genuinely wish all of the contestants and my fellow judges all the best," Matthew concluded.
The actor's wife Renee Puente, 37, reposted Matthew's video to her Instagram account and shared her response to the controversy in the caption.
"It's been a wild ride... My husband has finally been given an opportunity to speak his truth. He has done so with such grace and integrity in a situation that is complex and incredibly complicated," Renee wrote.
"Gossip and cruelty are poison that have penetrated the depths of our society and somehow have made people forget their true nature -- Love & compassion."
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"Perspective my people. Stop perpetuating hate and shame. NO ONE DESERVES IT... To all those who have shined love and light in our lives through this, thank you... To all the rest -- sending Love & Light," Renee said in conclusion.
Late last week, Matthew had released a vague announcement that he was leaving So You Think You Can Dance that initially left the circumstances of his exit unclear and left some fans believing he may have left SYTYCD voluntarily.
Just over a week into So You Think You Can Dance's Season 17 broadcast schedule, Matthew issued a statement to multiple press outlets about his sudden and unexpected departure from the show.
Matthew said he was "leaving" the show, which premiered on May 18, because he "did not follow competition production protocols" during filming.
"Having the opportunity to be a judge on So You Think You Can Dance was an incredible honor for me. Therefore, it is my deepest regret to inform you that I will be leaving the show," Matthew said late last month.
"After filming the audition rounds for the show and completing the selection of the 12 finalists, I did not follow competition production protocols, preventing me from being able to judge the competition fairly."
He added, "I cannot apologize enough to all involved and I will be watching alongside you all on what I know will be one of the best seasons yet."
Given the reality dancing competition's audition episodes have already been filmed, Matthew will continue to appear on the So You Think You Can Dance season for a couple more weeks.
Representatives for Fox recently told Us Weekly that the network "will soon announce a new judge to the series for the next wave of the competition starting on June 15th featuring the Top 12 performing for America's vote."
An insider told the magazine at the time that Matthew is "disappointed" about his early exit from the series but he's "happy to have left on good terms."
"He plans to spend time with his family and is excited about what is next," the insider noted.
Matthew had joined So You Think You Can Dance as a member of a new panel of judges for Season 17.
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Former judges of So You Think You Can Dance include Adam Shankman, Vanessa Hudgens, Maddie Ziegler, Jason Derulo, and Paula Abdul.
Cat Deeley is once again hosting So You Think You Can Dance for its seventeenth season.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
