'Tower Heist' Director Brett Ratner Issues Apology for Gay Slur

Tower Heist director Brett Ratner is known for his candid remarks on everything from his sexual experiences with Olivia Munn to his belief that some fans of the X-Men franchise considered him the "antichrist." But the filmmaker went too far according to many when he said, "Rehearsal is for fags,” during a screening of his film on Friday.

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On Monday, Ratner released a statement saying, “I apologize for any offense my remarks caused. It was a dumb and outdated way of expressing myself. Everyone who knows me knows that I don’t have a prejudiced bone in my body. But as a storyteller I should have been much more thoughtful about the power of language and my choice of words.”

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Ratner was doing a Q&A session at the Arclight Hollywood after introducing the film to the audience. An audience member asked what rehearsals were like for the film, which stars Eddie Murphy, Ben Stiller and Casey Affleck.

It was then that Ratner responded, “Rehearsal? What’s that? Rehearsal’s for fags. Rehearsal. Not much. A lot of prep, preparation, complex action sequences, visual effects.”

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GLAAD quickly condemned the statement, and is now asking for more of a statement from Ratner.

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“This apology is a good start, but we're working with Ratner's people for more action, to clearly send a message to Hollywood that the anti-gay slurs used by bullies and bigots have no place in the world of entertainment, or anywhere else,” GLAAD wrote in a statement.

Ratner’s next gig will be producing the 2012 Academy Awards, which will be hosted by Tower Heist star Eddie Murphy.