No one knows exactly what changes Elon Musk has in store for Twitter as its new owner, but multiple celebrities and activists have been terrified for months, with some even threatening to quit the platform if the deal went through.
Some of these Hollywood stars and political activists vowed to leave the site back in April when rumors of the billionaire Tesla founder buying Twitter first started circulating. Others were just openly critical of the potential sale. Now that the takeover is complete and Musk trolled haters by telling them to “let that sink in,” it’ll be interesting to see which accounts, if any, follow through on their promises to deactivate their accounts.
Mia Farrow
The 77-year-old actress deleted her original April tweet claiming she would leave Twitter if it wound up in Musk’s hands, Newsweek reported.
“Well if Twitter becomes even more toxic — with Trumpy-treasonous lies & all the hatred — it will be taken less seriously, and people like me will quit — for peace of mind,” Farrow wrote in the now-deleted message.
Farrow followed up with a plea to Musk to maintain the integrity of the platform. “You gave us Tesla and Space X,” she shared. “Thank you! Hope you can keep Twitter worthy of your previous achievements and of lawful people everywhere.”
Shaun King
Writer and social justice activist Shaun King appeared to delete his Twitter account in April, claiming Musk’s purchase was another example of white supremacy.
“At its root, Elon Musk wanting to purchase Twitter is not about left vs right. It’s about white power,” King tweeted in April.
“The man was raised in Apartheid by a white nationalist. He’s upset that Twitter won’t allow white nationalists to target/harass people. That’s his definition of free speech.”
Then he was back and tweeting at Donald Trump Jr. “You wish. […]. I didn’t delete my account,” he wrote. “I was getting death threats and hack attempts from your buddies who stormed the Capitol and had to make it more secure.”
Jameela Jamil
“She-Hulk” actress and feminist activist Jameela Jamil left Twitter in April, but she also eventually came back.
“Ah he got Twitter. I would like this to be my what lies here as my last tweet. Just really *any* excuse to show pics of Barold,” she shared in a tweet that was later deleted.
“I fear this free speech bid is going to help this hell platform reach its final form of totally lawless hate, bigotry, and misogyny. Best of luck.”
When it looked like Musk’s purchase could fall apart over the summer, Jamil came back with a post that said, “MWAHAHAHAHAHA I’m BACK.”
But now that he’s officially in charge, it’s unclear if Jamil will disappear again.
Amy Siskind
The author and activist is still on Twitter for now, but is using her platform to mock Musk and urge Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to become a real competitor.
“Twitter under Elon Musk is the next Musk Social,” she wrote in one update.
“Now that Zuckerberg realizes his little Meta fantasy is just that, and that Musk Social is going to be a massive fail, maybe he’ll actually clean up Facebook and make it better,” Siskind said on Wednesday.
Her reaction to Musk taking over was, “You are now at whim of a narcissist man child, whose ego is being puffed up by dictators. What could go wrong.”
Rob Reiner
Activist filmmaker and extremist Reiner was equally panicked, writing, “Will [Musk] allow a Criminal who used this platform to lie and spread disinformation to try to overthrow the US Government to return and continue his Criminal activity? And if he does, how do we combat it?”
George Takei
Actor George Takei expressed trepidation about Musk’s takeover but resolved to stay on the platform.
“I’m not going anywhere,” the “Star Trek” actor and activist tweeted in April. “Should this place become more toxic, I pledge to strive even harder to lift up reason, science, compassion and the rule of law. The struggle against fascism, misinformation, and hate requires tough fighters. I hope you stay in the fight, right beside me.”
J. Smith-Cameron
“Succession” actress J. Smith-Cameron said she was looking for a new social media alternative.
“Anybody ready to find another non-Musk forum, sans disinformation and nonstop stream of unfiltered hate?” she shared in April.