gilmore girls luke

Gilmore Girls actor Scott Patterson criticises show over 'disgusting' scene: 'It wasn't okay'

The comedy-drama aired between 2000 and 2007 before its Netflix revival

TV & Film Writer
September 13, 2022

Scott Patterson starred in every single episode of Gilmore Girls, which aired for seven seasons between 2000 and 2007, making him one of the show's most beloved cast members. 

MORE: Inside Gilmore Girls star Scott Patterson’s marriage to wife 20 years younger than him

However, he has recently opened up about the one day on set on set of the popular comedy-drama that he said he found "disturbing" and "infuriating". Find out more below…

WATCH: Are you a fan of Gilmore Girls?

Since 2021, the 64-year-old actor has been hosting Gilmore Girls re-watch podcast I Am All In and on a recent episode, the season three episode entitled Keg! Max! which aired in April 2003, was discussed.

MORE: The truth behind Gilmore Girls stars Lauren Graham and Scott Patterson's feud

MORE: Gilmore Girls then vs now: See how the cast has changed over the years

During one scene in the episode, Lauren Graham's Lorelai and Melissa McCarthy's Sookie cheekily trade remarks about Luke's backside as he's bent over fixing a stove. Frustrated with them, he turns around and tells them to "stop talking about my butt" and says their conversation is "in bad taste."

The season three scene left Scott Patterson feeling "objectified"

Reminiscing about how the scene made him feel, he told listeners of the podcast that he felt that he was "objectified" by his female co-stars as well as the show's creators and wishes that he had said something at the time.

"I realized it wasn't OK, and it didn't make me feel comfortable at all. It made me feel really embarrassed, actually," he explained. "It is infuriating to be treated that way — it is infuriating — because you're being treated like an object. It's disturbing, and it's disgusting, and I had to endure that through that entire scene and many takes."

Luke played Lorelai's love interest in the show

"It was all about the butt, the butt, the butt, the butt," he continued. "When we weren't filming, we were sitting down — people were still talking about the butt, the butt, the butt. It was the most disturbing time I have ever spent on that set, and I couldn't wait for that day to be over."

The actor said also said he was frustrated at himself for not speaking up back then but said that he didn't want to "make waves" with his colleagues on the series, which was brought back in 2016 for a revival miniseries with Netflix.

Scott hosts the Gilmore Girls re-watch podcast I Am All In

"It's as disgusting for women to objectify men as it is for men to objectify women, and it's as harmful," he said. "Just because it was 2003 doesn't mean it was OK. It's never OK, and I didn't feel comfortable doing it, and it [expletive] me off. And I never said anything, so I was angry at myself for never saying anything. But I had this job, and I didn't want to make waves and all that."

MORE: 7 shows to watch if you love Gilmore Girls

He even went so far as to say that the scene caused him to question why he was doing the series at the time but clarified that his co-stars and their performances are not to blame.

"It's set up where you're going to almost have to giggle because you love these characters so much. Everybody's doing their job within the scene and performing it so well, and the timing's there and you can't help but laugh, but I'm just pointing out how incredibly small it made me feel doing it," he said. "And I think it really reduces the character and it really reduces their characters as well to be involved in something like that."

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