Jenna Dewan and Allison Holker with an inset of Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss. Getty Images (3)
Allison Holker is receiving support from Jenna Dewan amid backlash for sharing details about late husband Stephen “tWitch” Boss in her upcoming memoir.
“Love u @allisonholker and sharing this will help others know to reach out for help,” Dewan, 44, wrote via her Instagram Story on Tuesday, January 7, including a red heart emoji. Alongside the message, the actress and dancer reposted a video from Holker’s interview with People.
Holker, 36, spoke with the magazine for a story published on Tuesday about her book, This Far: My Story of Love, Loss, and Embracing the Light, which details her life and Boss’ death by suicide in December 2022. Hours after the interview’s release, Holker received backlash from some of Boss’ loved ones for speaking about his personal life.
“Anyone who knows me, knows I go straight to the source during a conflict and handle my business,” Courtney Ann Platt, who appeared on So You Think You Can Dance alongside Holker, wrote via Instagram on Tuesday. “But since there’s clearly no shame in being so public, I haven’t said a word in two years but here I go. This is by far the most tacky, classless, opportunistic act I have ever seen in my entire life.”
Platt, 36, claimed she was friends with the pair and referenced how Holker discussed details from Boss’ life that had not been made public. “You’re a living, breathing bulldozer,” Platt wrote. “Stick to your own demons. Shame on you Allison, shame on your money hungry team. Let my friend Rest in Peace not your PR.”
Boss’ brother, Dré Rose, also claimed there was tension between his family and Holker. “We have noticed a disturbing lack of communication and inclusion concerning the children’s activities and well-being,” he wrote on Tuesday. “It’s disheartening that their interactions with their grandmother, and the wider family, have been noticeably limited.”
Allison Holker is speaking out amid the backlash surrounding her decision to share personal details about late husband Stephen “tWitch” Boss in her upcoming memoir. On Tuesday, January 7, Holker, 36, gave a wide-ranging interview to People about This Far: My Story of Love, Loss, and Embracing the Light, which tackles her life and Boss’ death […]
Holker has yet to address Platt and Rose’s comments. However, when fellow dancer Kelly Gibson wrote in the comments of People’s post, “This whole thing made me sad. He’s gone. Why tear apart this name? This paycheck was not worth disgracing his name,” Holker responded, “I’ll always love you. Just trying to help people feel safe to ask for help and support.”
Us Weekly reached out to Holker for comment.
In her interview on Tuesday, Holker got candid about navigating life about Boss’ death. (The former DJ on The Ellen DeGeneres Show died by suicide at age 40.) Just before Boss’ funeral, Holker shared that she found a “cornucopia” of drugs including mushrooms, pills and “other substances I had to look up on my phone” hidden in Boss’ closet.
“It was a really triggering moment for me because there were a lot of things I discovered in our closet that I did not know existed,” she said. “It was very alarming to me to learn that there was so much happening that I had no clue [about]. It was a really scary moment in my life to figure that out, but it also helped me process that he was going through so much and he was hiding so much, and there must have been a lot of shame in that.”
Allison Holker found closure after husband Stephen “tWitch” Boss‘ death by reading his journals. “He was wrestling with a lot inside himself, and he was trying to self-medicate and cope with all those feelings because he didn’t want to put it on anyone because he loved everyone so much,” Holker, 36, told People on Tuesday, […]
Holker explained that she knew Boss used marijuana, noting that he would smoke weed in the guesthouse at night after their kids were asleep. (Holker and Boss shared daughters Weslie, 16, and Zaia, 5, and son Maddox, 8.)
After his death, Holker turned to Boss’ journals. “He was wrestling with a lot inside himself, and he was trying to self-medicate and cope with all those feelings because he didn’t want to put it on anyone because he loved everyone so much,” she said. “He didn’t want other people to take on his pain.”
In Boss’ entries, Holker shared that her late husband had alluded to being sexually abused by a male figure in his childhood.
“Reading Stephen’s journals, and even going back into the books he had read and the things that he was highlighting and lining, really gave me a better perspective of where he was in life and the type of things he was struggling with,” she said. “It did have me feel a lot of empathy towards him and sadness for all the pain that he was holding.”
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org. If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
