Jasmine Guy is addressing critics who posted negative comments about her appearance following the revival of “A Different World.”
Fans of the hit sitcom were reunited on September 24 when Guy and his character Whitley reprised her role in the Netflix reboot of the series. Guy is joined by Kadeem Hardison, Darryl M. Bell and Cree Summers, who make special guest appearances on the new show.
But while many fans were happy to see Whitley, Dwayne, Ron and Freddie back together, others began comparing Guy to the ’80s version of himself.
She reacted to the comments on her Instagram post on September 27.
“The internet can be cruel to women as they get older. On the one hand, it wants us to celebrate life, and on the other hand, it criticizes every sign that we’re living it,” she said.
Guy continued: “Ageing brings change, and I’m not going to claim that all change is easy. But beauty, style and joy have no expiration date.”
She encouraged her followers not to spend their time judging themselves or each other and instead focus on loving each other “creating memories and living the life we are here to live.” She also included Al Green’s “Simply Beautiful” in the post.
Friends and fans of the celebrity applauded her uplifting message and left supportive responses.
Tina Knowles praised Guy for being a “Successful, Beautiful, elegant Lady.”
Tatyana Ali called the 64-year-old actress “gorgeous” and added multiple crown, glitter and red rose emojis.
Co-star Cornell Young IV, who plays Shaquille Johnson in the revival, wrote: “You are so Amazing! An even more Amazing soul! I love you.”
One fan wrote, “You are THEEEE JASMINE GUY. An icon then and now. The internet can be so cruel to women who live long enough to be old, but please know that so many of us see your beauty, your talent, and the legacy you’ve created. We love you!”
Despite some negative posts, Guy was busy celebrating the return of “A Different World” on social media, sharing praise from fans about the original and the revival on his Instagram stories. Fans are also uploading scenes from their favorite episodes of the sitcom, which ran for six seasons from 1987 to 1993.
Guy, Summers, and Bell stopped by TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle on September 23 to chat about the Netflix show and share some behind-the-scenes stories from filming the original series.
Guy revealed that although Whitley and Dwayne are a couple he’s fans of, in real life Hardison is dating Summer.
“I really love her, but she was seeing him,” Guy said of Hardison, while pointing at Summer.
He joked that the set was “pretty incestuous.”
Guy later confirmed that she was dating Dominic Hoffman, who played one of Whitley’s love interests, when the show aired.
“Sounds a lot like ‘Brady Bunch,'” he joked.