Christian actress Oluwaseyi Omooba, who is better known as Seyi Omooba is now facing more than $414,000 in legal fees after judges with the Employment Tribunal London decided that her case will not move forward.
Omooba claimed "discrimination, breach of contract, and harassment" against Leicester Curve Theatre and Global Artists Agency, which removed her from the production of "The Color Purple," in which she landed the lead role in 2019. She was fired from the production when Facebook posts of hers were uncovered, in which the Christian actress spoke of a Biblical stand on homosexuality.
Omooba was set to play Celie, a lesbian role in the production, who was in a relationship with another female character named Shug. According to BBC, Omooba told the tribunal that while she read the book in school and watched the film adaptation by Steven Spielberg featuring Whoopi Goldberg, she believed that the film downplayed the lesbian relationship between Celie and Shug onscreen. The Christian actress claimed that in the film, Celie's sexuality was ambiguous and that she would have not played the part if she was explicitly told that Celie was gay.
Goldberg, who once portrayed the role of Celie, herself described the character as "Not really about feminism, or lesbianism, despite the fact that Celie finds out about love and tenderness from another woman....It has nothing to do with lesbianism. It has to do with, her eyes are opened, now she understands," CBN reported.
In March 2019, the Christian actress' Facebook post biblical stand on homosexuality was uncovered and it partially read, "I do not believe you can be born gay, and I do not believe homosexuality is right, though the law of this land has made it legal doesn't mean its [sic] right."
Omooba was fired after the post was made known to the production. The Christian actress took her case to court and was seeking about $6,000 from the theater and an additional $34,500 for "injury to feelings and reputational damage." From her agents, she claimed up to $136,000 for "loss of earnings, future losses, injury to feelings and reputational damage."
However, the panel rejected her demands and argued that "There is no financial loss because she would not have played the part." She was then ordered to pay costs to her former agency and to the Curve Theater in Leicester, England, where she was supposed to perform. She now faces up to $414,000 in fees.
According to CBN News, Christian Legal Centre lawyers represented Omoobi, arguing that the "lesbian theme is not present at all" and that the Christian actress "was never asked explicitly to play this character as a lesbian." Christian Concern Chief Executive Andrea Williams also argued that Omoobi's case is "merely another example of anti-Christian censorship and discrimination in modern Britain."
Williams said that Omooba was "dismissed because of her Christian beliefs, and that is the end of the matter - the law does not accept any excuses for that" and that the "woke Establishment" fought against her "so fiercely" under the flag of "ferocious propaganda" against Christians.
"The Tribunal has effectively joined the campaign of 'canceling' Seyi for her Christian beliefs. She and we are not intimidated and have appealed this shocking judgment which is a travesty of reality," Williams concluded.
