Anthony Anderson is explaining himself after facing backlash for an old video that showed him making an inappropriate comment to Lindsay Lohan. A spokesperson for the actor told Entertainment Weekly that Anderson was only joking when he told the 17-year-old actress during a 2003 interview that he “likes them young.”
“This interview was clearly intended as comedy. He regrets if the humor was in poor taste and maintains the utmost respect for Lindsay,” the spokesperson told Entertainment Weekly. “Any implication to the contrary is both inaccurate and potentially defamatory.”
Anderson made the comment during a 2003 interview
Anderson, then 33, interviewed Lohan on The Sharon Osbourne Show in 2003 while guest-hosting. During the segment, which has now resurfaced online, Lohan mentioned that she had become roommates with Raven-Symoné.
“Both of you are beautiful women. Both of you are young and have your individual styles,” Anderson said.
He then asked if there would be any gentlemen at their new place.
“No one. I don’t have a boyfriend,” Lohan responded.
Anderson turned to the audience and said, “She’s single, but looking!”
Lohan followed up by saying, “I’m illegal, for people that are old.”
To that, Anderson added: “Some men like them young. We ain’t gonna mention no names, but I’m one of them.”
Social media users criticize Anderson’s explanation
A social media user who reshared the interview clip also brought up the rape allegations Anderson faced in 2004. According to Entertainment Weekly, the user was referencing allegations Anderson faced while filming Hustle & Flow in 2004. Those charges were dropped. He was later sued for sexual assault in 2004 by a woman on the set of All About The Andersons, and in 2018, he was investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department stemming from a sexual assault allegation, but the district attorney declined to press charges.
Others chimed in with criticism, rejecting the explanation that the remark was a joke.
“Obviously Sharon Osbourne had she been in that day wouldn’t have bothered to ask these creepy questions,” another person wrote on X. “Lohan even threw in that she was ‘illegal to old people’ and then his response is this? Gross …”
Obviously Sharon Osbourne had she been in that day wouldn’t have bothered to ask these creepy questions. Lohan even threw in that she was ‘illegal to old people’ and then his response is this? Gross …
— Kelly Hall (@thekellyhall66) July 26, 2025
The interview remains a trending topic as many on social media continue to react to the exchange and the actor’s response.