The “Abbott Elementary” star opens up about the biggest adjustment she’s had to make since becoming famous.
Most famous people have a seminal moment when they stopped doing “regular” things. For Janelle James, that moment arrived in Target.
The 45-year-old actress recently opened up about the “biggest adjustment” she’s had to make since gaining notoriety through her starring role as the infamous principal Ava on “Abbott Elementary.”
While in conversation with the Los Angeles Times, James recalled a time during “Abbott Elementary’s” first season when she was just starting to gain fame and a routine trip to Target quickly turned into a less-than-ideal interaction with a fan.
“I was looking at doormats as you do, and this guy comes up to me, and I didn’t see him, I heard him say, ‘I got to hug you.’ And I was like, he not talking to me because I don’t know this man,” she recalled. “And he picked me up off the ground. This huge guy picked me up off the ground and gave me a hug, which I’m sure was in love, but that had me shook.”
The comedian said the interaction was so upsetting that her discomfort was still all over her face when she returned to set for the show the next day.
“I remember I went to work the next day, and it was on my face that I was shook like, what just happened? And Tyler [ James Williams], my co-star, was like, ‘What’s going on with you?’” she continued.
When she opened up to Williams about the incident, he told her point blank, “‘What are you doing in Target? Like, you can’t go to Target anymore.’”
She noted that before the encounter, the retail giant, currently facing widespread boycotts because of its rollback on DEI policies, used to be her “happy place.”
“And so that was an adjustment,” she added. “Just people knowing who I am when I’m in my jammies trying to get some gummy bears.”
Since the interview clip began circulating online, discussions have been ignited about the inappropriateness of parasocial relationships fans can sometimes form with celebrities and internet personalities.
“Exactly why I don’t talk to celebrities,” one user wrote on Instagram. “Yall have your lives and deserve the ability to live it, and go shopping! Sometimes I say hi but my goodness, everyone deserves to live normal lives.”
Another on the same platform wrote, “He was doing too much… even if he knew you, you are too grown for anyone to be randomly walking up and picking you up off the ground like a child.”
“It’s really wild to touch someone without their permission like that. And to actually pick you up. Wth,” added another user.
Some even noted how bizarre that must have felt given her gender.
“Wow. I couldn’t imagine being a woman and that happening. I imagine that was scary and traumatizing as h—,” commented one user.
Then there were those in the comments who were amused by her apparent recognition of the ongoing boycott.
One user quipped in the comments, ““Not that we are”. That part!”
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Originally sourced via trusted media partner. https://thegrio.com/2025/06/13/the-reason-janelle-james-doesnt-shop-at-target-anymore-might-surprise-you-used-to-be-my-happy-place/
