Ugly Behind the Scenes The 100 Drama That Forced One Star to Leave the Show
Ricky Whittle, the star behind Lincoln in The 100, said he had to exit the CW show because his ex-boss Jason Rothenberg "abused his position."
The post-apocalyptic CW series The 100 ended back in 2020. But it is still notorious for an ugly behind-the-scenes scandal made public after one of the leading actors Ricky Whittle exited the show. Whittle played one of the major characters of the second and third seasons of The 100, Lincoln.
The character who initially appeared as a recurring character in Season 1 was a Trikru warrior who befriended and helped the Delinquents sent to Earth to find out if it was habitable after a nuclear apocalypse. Lincoln was killed off in Season 3 after Ricky Whittle expressed a desire to exit the show.
At first, fans thought that the actor left The 100 to pursue other opportunities – the actor was cast as Shadow Moon in American Gods. However, Whittle told AfterBuzz TV that he was actually bullied off the show by its showrunner Jason Rothenberg.
The actor's revelation came after his mother tweeted about Rothenberg's hostile attitude toward her son. The woman highlighted that Ricky "had to walk away" because of the bullying. In the shocking interview with AfterBuzz TV, the actor confirmed his mother's statement.
"Rothenberg abused his position to make my job untenable," the actor explained.
Turned out, Lincoln's screen time was often cut by the showrunner who had an unexplained beef with Whittle. The actor said the showrunner was doing everything to make Lincoln an "insignificant character."
He even approached other producers to understand why his character is given so few lines but they said he needed to speak with Rothenberg. At last, Whittle decided not to tolerate the bullying and take on other roles. Before exiting the actor had to film a final scene where his character was shot in the head. Whittle was not happy about such a death and thought Lincoln's arc had a very weak ending.
"He was executed for no reason. It was very weak," the actor complained in the interview.
Unwilling to stir up the scandal, Jason Rothenberg never directly addressed Whittle's accusations but instead issued a short statement to the press saying how he appreciated all the work Ricky Whittle did on The 100 and wishing him all the best in his future career.