Drew Barrymore said she 'respects' Lucy Liu for standing up to Bill Murray after he insulted her on 'Charlie's Angels' set
- Lucy Liu and Bill Murray had a dispute on set after Murray began insulting Liu during a rehearsal.
- Liu has previously explained how she stood up for herself against Murray.
- Now her costar, Drew Barrymore, said she's "proud" of how Liu handled the situation.
Lucy Liu and Bill Murray infamously had a feud on the set of the 2000 movie "Charlie's Angels" after Murray began hurling insults at Liu during a rehearsal.
Now, Liu's costar and fellow Angel, Drew Barrymore, has spoken about the incident, too, on her most recent episode of "The Drew Barrymore Show." Barrymore insisted that Murray was the aggressor and that she's proud of Liu for standing up for herself.
"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, 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," Barrymore said.
"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," she continued. "I respected her then. I respect her now. I am proud of us as a team and a company that we didn't tiptoe on the eggshells."
Barrymore said that the incident was "dealt with" then and there and they swiftly moved on and focused working on the movie.
In the film, which followed three women working in a detective agency, Liu played Alex Munday, one of the Angels, while Murray played Charlie's assistant, John Bosley. Barrymore played Dylan Sanders, another Angel, while the third Angel, Natalie Cook, was played by Cameron Diaz.
Murray and Liu have since met amicably in person at a "Saturday Night Live" reunion, and Liu said earlier this summer, when speaking on the Los Angeles Times' "Asian Enough" podcast, that she has no ill feelings against the actor.
However, she also clarified that she wasn't "going to sit there and be attacked" during the incident on the movie set. So, when Murray started insulting her, she fought back verbally.
"Some of the language was inexcusable and unacceptable, and I was not going to just sit there and take it. So, yes, I stood up for myself, and I don't regret it," Liu said on the podcast.
"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," she continued. "And I would not stand down, and nor should I have and nor did I."
Murray did not return for the 2003 sequel, "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle," and his character ended up being replaced by the late Bernie Mac.