The Flash actor Candice Patton says Warner Bros, CW treated her differently than white actors, shrugged off racist abuse

Actor Candice Patton, best known for playing Iris West on the superhero show The Flash, has said that the show’s network and studio ‘failed to protect her’ against toxic and racist fans when she debuted on the show back in 2014. The Flash, part of DC’s Arrowverse, airs on The CW Network and is produced by Warner Bros. Also read: Ewan McGregor takes on trolls for racially abusing Obi-Wan Kenobi co-star Moses Ingram

Candice, who has played Iris–Flash’s love interest–since the show began in 2014, recently recalled on The Open Up Podcast that in the early days of the show, fans’ racism toward her was shrugged off by the CW and Warner Bros.

“In 2014, there were no support systems, no one was looking out for that. It was just free range to get abused every single day,” she said. Candice was the first woman of colour to play Iris, a move which angered certain sections of fans. She added, “It’s a dangerous place to be in when you’re one of the first, and you’re facing backlash for it and there’s no help. Now, people understand a little better and they understand how fans can be racist, especially in the genre, and misogynistic. But at the time it was kind of like: ‘Yeah that’s how fans are, but whatever.'”

The actor also stated that she was treated differently than white actors on the show. “It was more about the protocols in place and the things I see happening for my white counterpart that’s not happening to me. Seeing how I was treated differently than other people. Seeing how I’m not protected by the network and the studio. Those were the things that not necessarily hurt me but frustrated me,” she said.

The Flash stars Grant Gustin in the title role, along with Candice, Danielle Panabaker, Carlos Valdez, Tom Cavanagh, and Jesse L Martin in supporting roles. The show’s eighth and final season is currently airing.