Halle Berry Doubles Down on Her Feud with Drake Over Slime Photo: “That Was the F—k You to Me”

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 18 September 2023

Over the weekend, Marie Claire reported that Halle Berry was standing up for herself (and rightfully so) to Drake, who used a photo of the Academy Award-winning actress getting slimed at the 2012 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards to promote his new single, “Slime You Out.” (By the way: this writer is choosing to not share the slime photo here because obviously Berry isn’t in favor of it, and we want to respect her wishes.)

Many assumed that Drake just didn’t ask before using the image, but it turns out that he did ask, Berry said no—and he proceeded to use it anyway. (Yikes.) Let’s back up a minute: Berry went on Instagram to post the words “Sometimes you have to be the bigger guy…Even if you’re a woman!” After a fan commented on the post and asked what Berry thought about Drake using the aforementioned photo for his new single with SZA, she replied “Didn’t get my permission. That’s not cool. I thought better of him! Hence my post today. When people you admire disappoint you…you have to be the bigger person and move on!”

Now, another fan asked why Berry is so “mad” since the photo is “owned by Getty Images,” and Berry claimed Drake “initially reached out to her for her permission, and she turned him down,” Page Six reports. Or, in Berry’s own words on Instagram: “Cuz he asked me and I said NO that’s why,” she wrote. “Why ask if you intend to do what you want to do ! That was the f—k you to me. Not cool. You get it?”

No official response from Drake, “but he appeared to weigh in on the drama with a cryptic post shared to his Instagram Story Saturday night,” Page Six writes. “He posted a photo of himself with his back to the camera in a T-shirt that read, ‘What the hell is going on?’” He then captioned the image “literally tho…”

Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.

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