Brenda Song reportedly alleges Disney 'stopped' her from acting in a Clint Eastwood film

Brenda Song rose to prominence on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, a hit Disney Channel show. As Song tells it, however, Disney intervened when she attempted to pursue more adult roles amid her time on the network, something she laments to this day.

Among the opportunities Brenda Song had to forego, was a role in the Clint Eastwood-directed film, Gran Torino. She recently opened up about her experience, upon being awarded Variety’s Virtuoso Award at the Bentonville Film Festival in Arkansas. Per Variety, Brenda Song shared,

“The character had an intended s*xual assault scene, so Disney nixed it.”

Although the missed chance definitely struck a chord for the actress, eventually she was able to move on and learn from the experience. She said:

"I was like, ‘Okay, I guess it didn’t work out.’ "

Representatives at People reportedly reached out to The Walt Disney Company in the aftermath, but there has been no response to their request for comment to date.

Brenda Song — casting issues, brief history

Brenda Song would unfortunately continue to face similar issues close to a decade later into her career. The actress claimed to have hit similar roadblocks when trying to secure a role in David Fincher’s The Social Network, where there were alleged concerns about her taking on the role.

According to a Variety report, it was then that Brenda Song took matters into her own hands and empowered herself to make a change. At that moment, she decided the right course of action was to approach Disney's branded television President & COO, Gary Marsh, directly to share her concerns.

“I was just like, 'I am an actor. When you hired me, I was not a hotel heiress. If I have ever done anything in my personal life to ever draw bad attention to your company, I understand. But this is the last season of the show, and this is the opportunity of a lifetime.' "

Luckily for the actress, Disney ultimately acquiesced, and her efforts were vindicated. She said:

"And I was so fortunate, they were so supportive. They allowed me to do this film that truly changed my life.”

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For context, Brenda Song began modelling at the age of six before making her debut on screen in the 1995 sitcom, Thunder Alley, with a guest role. Subsequently, Song was cast on various network television shows before first being cast by Disney in 2000. Her role as London Tipton in The Suite Life of Zack and Cody on the network truly made her a household name for an entire generation.

In recent years, Brenda Song had parts in the shows Dollface and Blue Eye Samurai, and the film The Last Showgirl. Most recently, she gave a memorable performance in the Netflix series, Running Point.

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