‘Insecure’ Creator Issa Rae Doesn’t ‘Give A F***’ What Fans Think Of Series Finale

After five seasons, Issa Rae’s popular comedy drama “Insecure” has come to an end. The series creator and leading lady got candid about how she feels now that the show’s over during an interview with Deadline. Plus, she revealed that fan reactions and opinions on the ending don’t matter to her one bit.

When asked if she was concerned fans would react negatively to Issa and Lawrence getting back together in the finale, Rae said, “I don’t give a f*** how people react to it, because to answer your question, it was a journey for both of our characters, to be honest.”

The creator went on to explain how at the beginning of the season, she was sure Issa would move past Lawrence. But that changed as the storyline progressed.

“​​I am a firm believer that sometimes you need time, and if it’s right for you and you want it, then it can be yours,” Rae told Deadline. She said later, “A lot of people hate Lawrence, but luckily, it’s not their relationship.”

And some viewers take that hatred to the extreme. According to “Insecure” actor Jay Ellis, who plays Lawrence in the series, one fan became so angry over fictional situations on the show that she physically attacked him in an airport.

“Yeah, I got slapped in JFK,” Ellis told Jemele Hill during a podcast interview. “[The fan] literally slapped me and went ‘Oh my God, Oh my God. I’m so sorry. I’m just so pissed at you, Lawrence,’” the actor recalled. “She was like, ‘And you’d think I know better because I’m a writer.’”

Despite strong feelings about character relationships, “Insecure” on HBO has received widespread praise and earned multiple Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. But there have been criticisms as well.

Rae recalled being asked to add white characters to the all black cast to give the show more universal appeal. 

“From the jump in creating the show, it was put in my mind that you had to have a white character to be a bridge, and for people to care, for it to get awards, for it to be considered worthy of the television canon,” Rae said during an interview with Mic. 

“[A colleague] was just like, ‘Girl, if you want this sh** to set off to the next level, you got to put a white character in there, then white people will care about it, then NPR is going to write about your shit, and it’ll blow up,’” the actress continued. 

After adding in the character Freida, who was white, Rae didn’t agree with giving her too much screen time. “And I was like, ‘F*** no! This is not a show about Freida!’” She went on to say, “That was when I started actively resisting.” 

After ditching the Frieda story, Rae recalled feeling better about the narrative. “We got rid of the We Got Y’all storyline. I realized, ‘Oh my gosh, our show is just about Black characters now in the most refreshing way.’”

While speaking with Deadline, Rae recounted some of her favorite series finales of all time, including “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Six Feet Under,” and “Breaking Bad.” The finale of “Insecure” aired on HBO December 26. 

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