“Beef” star David Choe is being eviscerated online over a resurfaced clip that showed him discussing sexually assaulting a masseuse at a Los Angeles spa — a story he later claimed he made up.
The graffiti artist originally made the incendiary statements about non-consensual oral sex in 2014 — but the footage was recently reposted to Twitter, where it sparked a firestorm of backlash.
Choe, 46, plays the criminal Isaak Cho on “Beef,” Netflix’s new dark dramedy series about a road rage incident that spirals out of control.
The wildly popular new streaming series, which stars Ali Wong and Steven Yuen, has received rave reviews and currently boasts a 98% fresh rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
However, Choe’s role was called into question online after investigative journalist Aura Bogado tweeted an unsettling clip from the artist’s now-defunct podcast “DVDASA.”
The tweet has since been deleted “in response to a report from the copyright holder,” per Twitter reps.
In the 2014 episode, entitled “Erection Quest,” the former “Vice” writer brazenly discussed touching a “black” masseuse without her consent, boasting that he was a “successful rapist,” Buzzfeed reported.
Choe described in lurid detail how he forced her to give him oral sex even though she’d “given me no signs that she’s into me or that this is appropriate behavior,” the Daily Mail reported.
“The thrill of possibly going to jail, you know, that’s what achieved the erection quest,” Choe exclaimed in the clip.
“Ew, you’re basically telling us that you’re a rapist now,” replied co-host, adult film star Asa Akira, per the Independent.
However, he defended his alleged actions, joking that “she said yes with her eyes.” A month later Choe issued a statement saying it was all a joke — an “edgy” extension of his previous forays into button-pushing art.
Choe has not responded to the Post’s request for comment regarding the video. The Post has also reached out to Netflix for comment about the resurfaced interview.
Meanwhile, needless to say, many new “Beef” fans were appalled by the clip.
“Ughhhh….just when i started to like this actor, he f’s up the whole image. men podcasters= trash,” exclaimed one horrified fan on Twitter.
Another wrote, “Wtf? He needs to be under the jail. With every goofy person laughing in that video not far behind.”
Others threatened to boycott the show.
“Four episodes in, but after listening to this, I’ll call it a season,” declared one disillusioned fan. “I can’t support this project. And yes, one person CAN ruin an entire show or experience.”
“This is sick and disturbing and we wonder why rape culture thrives — only the woman protested — the other male cowards stood by and became complicit bystanders,” fumed another. “I had Beef on the list to watch but nah #BoycottBeef @netflix do better.”
However the muralist did issue a statement a month after the episode originally aired, in which he claimed that the account was entirely untrue and was fabricated for entertainment purposes.
“If I am guilty of anything, it’s bad storytelling in the style of douche,” Choe wrote on his now-defunct website. “Just like many of my paintings are often misinterpreted, the same goes with my show. The main objective of all of my podcasts is to challenge and provoke my friends and the co-stars on the show.”
Choe added, “It’s my version of reality, it’s art that sometimes offends people. I’m sorry if anyone believed that the stories were fact. They were not!”
The artist suggested that the comments were in line with “DVDASA,” which he billed as a “dark, tasteless, completely irreverent show.”
Choe is most famous for making a fortune after he was hired to decorate Facebook headquarters with multiple murals.
He had reportedly opted to take stock options instead of cash as payment, and ended up earning a staggering $200 million when the company went public in 2012.
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