Rachel Bilson is clearing the air about Whoopi Goldberg’s critique of her comments.
The star, 42, opened up about the backlash she received from co-host, 67, after commenting on men who have a limited sexual history during her Broad Ideas with Rachel Bilson podcast.
“I want to say that I’ve been a fan of Whoopi’s for a very long time, so when I saw the tagline that she criticized something I said, I of course was concerned,” Bilson told Entertainment Weekly on Thursday.
“We make it a very safe open place to discuss anything, and we were just talking,” she continued to the outlet. “I have the power to edit our podcast, and I chose to keep the conversation as a whole in, because a lot of the time in life, you say something, and maybe you have a minute and you reflect on it.”
“The point I get across is that it doesn’t matter, and maybe in the past I would’ve looked at it [judgmentally], but I wouldn’t do that anymore,” she told EW. “I made it clear that I don’t want to sound judgmental, it was important that that point get across, not what I said initially.”
On Broad Ideas, which aired on Monday, Bilson spoke about questioning men who had a limited number of sexual partners in their 40s.
“This is going to sound so judgmental, but if a dude’s, like, in his 40s and he’s, like, slept with, like, four women,” she said, referring to how that might be a strange quality. “But it all depends. Maybe he’s been in, like, decade[-long] relationships. Totally respectable.”
On Thursday’s episode of The View, Goldberg commented on Bilson’s statements, saying, “I’m sorry, I think it’s very odd that you’re concerned that he’s had sexual partners — any sexual partners. Why is it your business?”
“Listen, men, traditionally, were taught to have many sexual partners,” the Ghost star continued. “That’s how it was. Men could go and do whatever they wanted to do, and women were not supposed to. Now that has been shifting, and young women have been bitching about, you know, ‘Why are you telling me what I should be [doing?]’ Now, it’s happening, and you’re mad. I don’t understand.”
In her conversation with EW, Bilson clarified, “It was a flippant comment that I was just talking with friends, and then I retracted it, because even talking about it now, I’m like, I don’t actually believe that. That’s why I think it’s important to stand up for it and clarify.”
This isn’t the first time that Bilson’s comments on her podcast have gotten her into trouble.
In May, she claimed she lost an acting job for “speaking candidly and openly about sex in a humorous way,” referring to when she detailed her bedroom preferences on an episode of the Women on Top podcast.
At the time, Bilson joked that she wanted to be “f — -ing manhandled” and shared that she preferred the missionary position. She later admitted she was “baffled” by the criticism.
“First of all, I said it in a joking manner in the interview, like, ‘Yeah, I wanna get f — -ing get manhandled,’” she explained on Broad Ideas. “Basically, it’s like, ‘Okay, give control or take control in the bedroom,’ whatever.”
“A single mom, a woman, lost a job because they were being candid and honest and the subject was sex,” the actress added. “I didn’t even have a chance to defend myself.”
The View airs weekdays on ABC (check local listings).
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