Is the embattled Giuliana Rancic changing her story and throwing her own E! show's writers under the bus for her controversial joke about Zendaya?
Four days after the Fashion Police co-host said the Disney star's dreadlocks smelled like "patchouli" and "maybe weed," she is still feeling the heat.
Reports that Giuliana Rancic could be fired turned out to be premature, but she's been scrambling to ensure that her career doesn't go up in smoke.
Rancic apologized to Zendaya on camera, and now Access Hollywood has released a statement in which she claims wasn't the creator of the comments.
"Giuliana Rancic's comments about Zendaya's dreadlocks may have seemed off the cuff, but Access Hollywood has learned otherwise," the statement says.
The comments, according to Billy Bush via Giuliana, were "penned by a Fashion Police show writer, and not something Giuliana came up with on her own."
"Billy also asked about reports of Kelly Osbourne trying to stop her and telling her Fashion Police colleagues they can't make comments like that about Zendaya."
"According to Giuliana," the statement says, "none of this is true."
"What she said actually happened is that Kathy Griffin spoke up and asked 'Who is Zendaya?' to which Kelly responded, wait a minute, let's not act like we don't know her."
"She's been a guest host on the show a couple of times."
Rancic evidently claims that her schedule, the timing of the Oscars and the show taping required other professionals to give her jokes to deliver on air.
"Fashion Police is a comedy show, and because there was such a fast turn-around time, they had to have a few things planted, according to Giuliana."
"A writer wrote the [Zendaya] line that got Giuliana in trouble."
"Nobody saw it as racist. The original joke was patchouli."
"There was a follow-up joke that never made it to air. It said 'I heard she's going on tour with the Grateful Dead,' alluding that the joke was referring to hippie culture."
Whatever its intent was, the joke did not go over well.
"There is a fine line between what is funny and disrespectful," Zendaya said initially. "Someone said something about my hair at the Oscars that left me in awe."
"Not because I was relishing in rave outfit reviews, but because I was hit with ignorant slurs and pure disrespect," the actress went on, clearly unamused.
"To say that an 18-year-old woman with locs must smell of patchouli oil or 'weed' is not only a large stereotype but outrageously offensive," she continued.
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