Cynthia Erivo Urgently Called Sunny Hostin When She Heard The View Host’s Framing of the Cornell 7 Case

On the October 5 episode of Behind the Table , a podcast in which hosts of ABC’s talk show The View recount the week’s episodes by taking a closer look at the stories covered — current co-host and former federal prosecutor Sunny Hostin revealed that her close friend and sorority sister, queer actress Cynthia Erivo , had made a point to reach out to her explaining why her controversial commentary on the Cornell 7 rape case was being met with intense backlash. Within the last week, Hostin has been blasted for her blunt take on the alleged Cornell rape case that she first discussed on the September 29 episode of The View . During the episode, Hostin shared her thoughts regarding Jane Doe’s statement saying, “under New York law, voluntary intoxication or drug use that merely impairs judgment does not legally constitute an inability to consent to sexual activity, right?” Hostin also questioned what she saw as inconsistencies between Jane Doe’s 2024 and 2026 statements. This set off a swarm of accusations claiming that Hostin was defending the Cornell men implicated in the case — an alleged 2024 gang-rape by members of the Chi Phi fraternity that has drawn international media attention after the anonymous Jane Doe came forward again in 2026, filing a civil lawsuit in New York Supreme Court on September 16. Apparently Hostin’s take didn’t sit well with Erivo, and shortly after the media firestorm erupted, the Wicked Star reached out to Hostin by phone call from Paris where she is currently working on a film about consent and sexual assault saying, per Hostin’s recollection, “Sis, I know you and I know your heart and your life’s work has been about protecting women and children. But, the clip that I saw doesn’t reflect who you are.” Erivo also said, “I’m a blunt person and you are a blunt person,” to Hostin about her delivery of the message regarding New York state law. Hostin explained that the reason she and Erivo are able to get along so well is because of their no “BS” approach in how they communicate, but also acknowledged, per Erivo’s advice, that she “need[s] to lead with empathy so that people can receive the message about the law.” The Color Purple Broadway star also mentioned that over the years, she’s had to learn to “give people her opinion in a way that they can receive it rather than just be blunt.” After the conversation, Hostin shared that the next time she spoke about the case, she followed Erivo’s advice and instead led with empathy so that people listening could understand that proving sexual assault and rape when a person is intoxicated or using drugs can be incredibly difficult in New York, opiningthat this may have been why the District Attorney decided not to prosecute the case when it was presented in 2024. Hostin maintained that as a lawyer who has spent many years prosecuting sex crimes, her instinct was to lead with the law. “I see things, when it comes to the law, sort of black-and-white. I apply the facts as I know them to the law,” she said on Behind the Table . “I needed, I felt, to bring us back to this New York law, which is really terrible and needs to be changed,” she shared later. Her personal opinion on and disagreement with the law was a sentiment that hadn’t initially been expressed in her original take on The View , and was a main catalyst to the backlash she received. “I was accused of defending these young men, and victim-shaming, which is something I would never do since I spent the majority of my career prosecuting sex crimes. So, I was kind of fascinated by the way people received the information that I gave, which was ultimately the law in New York must be changed because the bar is so very high in New York, once someone is voluntarily intoxicated, to prove sexual assault. It’s almost impossible to prove sexual assault.” Get the best of what’s queer. Sign up for Them ’s newsletters .