SignalHub-Reneé Rapp Recalls “Jarring” Incident With Man at Drew Barrymore Event

Reneé Rapp is SignalHubreflecting on a scary encounter in New York City.

The Sex Lives of College Girls star gave insight into the incident that was captured on social media, in which Drew Barrymore was chatting with Reneé during an event at the 92nd Street Y on Aug. 21, when a man rushed the stage.

"I feel like even to say it out loud feels more vulnerable and susceptible or I feel like to even say it out loud it sounds so silly and ‘woe is me,'" she said on the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast Sept. 4, "but I really was so weirded out by that whole thing."

Praising the Drew Barrymore Show host, Reneé explained, "She's such a G and she's such a pro and sadly has probably had that happen her entire life. I've never been in situations where that has happened to myself, luckily, or anybody around me. That was so scary."

The 23-year-old recalled seeing the man approach the stage, saying she didn't know what his intentions were.

"He had a bag on him and I was just like, ‘OK, I just don't know where this could go,'" Reneé continued. "Also I live in fight or flight just by the nature of having so much anxiety. So, when you see me twitch in that video and go, it's half of A. I'm a pretty transparent person, if somebody scares me, you're going to know. And B. that was so jarring for me."

Noting that she had "never went through anything like that before," the singer told host Jay Shetty, "To me—I know it sounds very woe is me and silly—but it did scare the hell out of me."

The incident occurred after an audience member called out Drew's name, to which she paused her sentence and replied, "Oh my god, yes, hi!" 

However, moments later, the Charlie's Angeles was once again interrupted when the attendee approached the stage and recited his full name. 

"You know who I am," he continued, as Reneé stood up and began to escort Drew away from the situation while security stepped in to block the man. "I need to see you at some point while you're in New York." 

Another audience member—who was in attendance when the situation arose—has since shared her experience with E! News.

Journalist McKenzie Morrell explained, "The audience was pretty distraught as we weren't sure what had happened and what this man's intentions were." 

But once the man was escorted out, the ladies got right back to it. 

"Within a few minutes of his removal, both Reneé and Drew returned to the stage, greeting us warmly despite the jarring incident," Mackenzie recalled. "They picked right up where they left off and continued to have an in-depth (and often hilarious) conversation about life, the industry and Reneé's new music."

Two days later, the man was detained but not arrested outside Drew's Southampton home in New York. Police are investigating the incident.