Alec Baldwin is clearly having a really bad weekend.
The former 30 Rock star stirred up plenty of controversy earlier this week when he called a nosy photographer a “c***sucking f**” during an argument. Although he attempted to deny such an incident took place, video released by TMZ showed the actor using the anti-gay slur outside of his Manhattan apartment building.
Following the suspension of his MSNBC show and a handful of confrontations with reporters, Alec Baldwin is ready to bid farewell to the entertainment business. According to the New York Daily News , the actor said he’s fed up with “public obsession” with his private life and is ready to hang up his hat.
“If quitting the television business, the movie business, the theater, any component of entertainment, is necessary in order to bring safety and peace to my family, then that is an easy choice,” Baldwin wrote on his Huffington Post blog.
At one point during his “Two Requests in Light of Recent Events” post, the actor seemed to think the government played a part in the media’s obsession with his current downward spiral. In short: If people had a voice in Washington, then perhaps they wouldn’t spend as much time worrying about his personal life. This is probably just wishful thinking.
“This country’s obsession with the private lives of famous people is tragic. It’s tragic in the sense that it is so clearly a projection of people’s frustration about their government, their economy, their own spiritual bankruptcy. You have no voice in Washington,” he wrote.
Alec Baldwin also seemed worried that his MSNBC chat program Up Late is on the verge of cancellation. The cable network decided to suspend the show for two weeks in the aftermath of the anti-gay slur controversy. However, Baldwin seems to think it may not return at all.
The actor explained:
“Whether the show comes back at all is at issue right now. But if the show dies, its fate ends up being no different than the vast majority of start-up TV programming, and so be it. We do take a small amount of pride in knowing that we beat CNN in the ratings each of our nights. (I forget who they had on at that time.) Don’t allow my problem to be MSNBC’s problem. They are good people who work hard at a job, just like many of you.”
MSNBC has yet to weigh in on the matter as of this writing. However, ratings for Baldwin’s late-night show are reportedly down from its October 11 debut.
Do you think Alec Baldwin is serious about retiring from the entertainment business?
[Image via lev radin / Shutterstock.com ]