It was 2013. Orange Is the New Black was the biggest thing on Netflix. Everyone was obsessed. Julianne Hough, the bubbly Dancing with the Stars darling, decided to head to a Casamigos Halloween party in Beverly Hills dressed as her favorite character.
She picked Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren.
But she didn't just wear the orange jumpsuit. She didn't just do the Bantu knots. She used makeup to significantly darken her skin. The backlash was almost instant. Within hours, photos hit the internet, and the phrase Julianne Hough blackface became a permanent fixture of her digital footprint.
It's one of those celebrity moments that never quite goes away. Even now, over a decade later, it pops up whenever she lands a new gig or tries to pivot her brand. Honestly, it’s a textbook case of how a "fan moment" can go horribly wrong when you ignore historical context.
The Costume That Changed Everything
Hough was 25 at the time. She was at the height of her early fame, fresh off roles in Footloose and Rock of Ages. She showed up to that party with a group of friends, all dressed as Litchfield inmates. While her friends just wore the costumes, Julianne's decision to use dark face paint immediately crossed a line that many found impossible to ignore.
It wasn't just "dark makeup." It was a callback to a deeply painful history of minstrelsy.
People were livid. Martha Plimpton famously tweeted that white people should just "not wear blackface," basically saying it’s the easiest rule in the world to follow. The NAACP even got involved. Joan Duvall-Flynn, who was then the President of the Media Area Unit of the NAACP of Pennsylvania, pointed out that if it was "impulsive insensitivity," she needed to be way more responsible as a public figure.
Hough didn't wait long to respond. She took to Twitter (now X) and posted a TwitLonger—remember those?—apologizing. She claimed she was a huge fan of Uzo Aduba and the character. She said she never intended to be "disrespectful or demeaning."
Why the Julianne Hough Blackface Scandal Kept Coming Back
You’d think a 2013 mistake would be buried by now. It isn't. The reason it keeps resurfacing is mostly due to her later career choices.
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Specifically, the 2021 drama surrounding the show The Activist.
When CBS announced a reality competition show where "activists" would compete for social media engagement, the internet collectively lost its mind. It felt dystopian. People started digging. They looked at the judges—Usher, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Julianne Hough.
Suddenly, the 2013 photos were everywhere again.
Critics pointed out the irony of someone who once wore blackface judging others on their "activism." It forced Hough to write another, much more modern apology. This time, she didn't just say "sorry if you were offended." She used phrases like "white privilege" and "white body bias." She admitted that she realized the costume was a "poor choice" that caused real hurt.
She basically admitted she had a lot of unlearning to do.
A Quick Timeline of Events
- October 2013: The Halloween party happens. The photos go viral. Hough issues her first apology.
- 2015: Uzo Aduba (the actress who played Crazy Eyes) finally speaks on it, politely saying it was a "good thing" that people were talking about why it was wrong.
- September 2021: The Activist is announced. The blackface controversy resurfaces. Hough issues a second, deeper apology on Instagram.
- Present Day: The incident remains a primary example in discussions about celebrity accountability and the history of racial caricatures in pop culture.
The Difference Between Homage and Caricature
A lot of people at the time defended her. They said, "She’s just a fan!" or "It’s just makeup!" But experts in history and sociology, like those cited in various NAACP reports over the years, argue that blackface can't be separated from its roots.
Historically, blackface was used by white performers to mock Black people, portraying them as "buffoonish" or "lazy." Even if Hough didn't intend to mock Uzo Aduba, she was using a tool—skin-darkening makeup—that was specifically designed for mockery for over a century.
That’s the nuance. It’s not just about the person’s heart; it’s about the symbol they’re wearing.
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Her brother, Derek Hough, even weighed in back then, saying it wasn't her "brightest moment" and that she was "mortified." But "being a sweet person," as he described her, doesn't erase the impact of a racially insensitive act.
Lessons for the Digital Age
So, what can we actually learn from this?
First, the internet is forever. If you’re a public figure, your 2013 is just as relevant as your 2026. Second, "intent" doesn't equal "impact." You can love a character and still represent them in a way that is objectively harmful.
If you're ever in doubt about a costume, a joke, or a social media post, here's a simple gut check:
- Does this involve changing my skin tone to represent a race I don't belong to? If yes, stop.
- Does this character's identity rely on a history of struggle that I haven't lived? If yes, be extra careful.
- Could I dress as this character without the makeup and still be recognized? (In Julianne’s case, the jumpsuit and hair would have been plenty).
The goal isn't to "cancel" people forever, but to see if they actually grow. Hough's 2021 apology showed a lot more self-awareness than her 2013 one. She stopped making excuses and started acknowledging the "why" behind the anger.
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That’s how you handle a legacy of mistakes. You don't hide from it; you acknowledge the "white privilege" that allowed you to be that oblivious in the first place and you do better.
Next time you're planning a costume, remember: you can celebrate a character without appropriating their identity. It's actually pretty easy once you stop overthinking it. Focus on the iconic props or the specific outfit, and leave the skin-tone "transformations" in the past where they belong.