Causing quite the scene, Whoopi Goldberg shocked the entire production of The View as she quickly got up to stop a physical altercation between two audience members.
The incident occurred on the daytime show’s set on Tuesday, March 26. New York City resident Brian Wilson provided Entertainment Weekly with some photos and details of the incident. Among the snaps was Goldberg leaving the show’s Hot Topics table to talk to a man she saw filming the show on his phone.
Whoopi Goldberg interrupts ‘The View’ today to get a man in the audience to stop recording on his phone.pic.twitter.com/m6wCTMPT1e
— Juice Pop (@TheJuicePop) March 27, 2024
Wilson shared that the intense exchange started just as The View hosts hit the stage. He said the exchange lasted around six minutes before Whoopi Goldberg walked off stage and addressed the situation.
Wilson then said he saw two women arguing with the man, who he said looked as though he was in his mid-60s. A woman sitting in front of the man appeared to be annoyed because he had his camera out. He was also putting the camera over her head to get a view of the co-hosts.
“I can see hand gestures out of the corner of my eye,” Wilson shared about the argument. “I could hear some noise on my right side, it started to become a little distracting.”
Wilson further recalled hearing the woman tell the man to stop what he was doing and move. “At one point I heard her say, ‘We might have to call security on you.”
Whoopi Goldberg Puts An End to an Audience Member Argument
As the fight escalated to being more physical, Wilson said that was when Whoopi Goldberg got involved.
“I can see some of the producers, stagehands, they’re all looking in that direction to see who the guy was,” Wilson continued. “I thought for sure that once the show went to commercial they’d be like, ‘Sir, you need to get out.’ But to my surprise, they didn’t.”
Whoopi Goldberg had to stop mid-conversation to put a stop to the intense exchange. “Hold on a second, hold on,” she was heard saying. She then said to the man, “Sir, I have to stop you with the camera. Because I see you. So, do me a favor, don’t pull it out again, I’d appreciate that. Thank you.”
Sara Haines also spoke about the incident. “There was a man in our eye line. Directly. He was lifting his phone up and the woman next to him kept hitting his arm aggressively.”
Haines added she could hear the exchange from her seat. “I was having a hard time focusing because I was thinking, is this growing or building? And that’s when Whoopi got up.”