As recently as 2010, a man could have gone on national television and made inappropriate comments about a woman without facing backlash. But partially inspired by the Time’s Up and Me Too movements (which seek to end these improper and predatory behaviors across industries), people are re-examining instances of harassment. So when an about eight-year-old clip of Gordon Ramsay making sexual comments to Sofia Vergara resurfaced, people began to critique the chef for his actions.
The incident happened while both were guests on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno. After participating in a skit where she yells at Leno and Ramsay for cooking “disgusting” food, the actor asks if she scared them. “I never scream like that in real life,” she said. “It was all acting.” Gordon, who touches her arm, said, “Only in the bedroom?”
She laughed it off and starts talking about her Emmy nomination before talking about her recent vacation. By this point, Leno had spoken about her looks a few times and asked his team to leave a picture of her in a bikini on screen for extra time. But when the conversation returned to her eating pizza (and the picture of her enjoying a pizza is once again displayed), Ramsay once again chimed in, “You seem like you’re enjoying that. You had a whole wedge in your mouth at one time? You haven’t heard of a knife and fork?”
Sofia explained that you don’t eat pizza with utensils, and he replied, “You just pick it up and stick it in.”
But if making sexual comments wasn’t enough, Ramsay also insulted the dulce de leche she brought for Leno, who took some time to make fun of her accent. “It tastes like shit fudge,” he said, perhaps trying to be playful. But Sofia defended the treat and asked about England’s desserts. When she made some generalizations about food in the UK, he smacked the side of her thigh. And Sofia let him know that he can’t touch her, but he just laughed it off.
Basically, the entire segment is a mess, and Sofia was objectified, mocked, and harassed in less than 10 minutes. Check out the entire segment below: