The 'L.A. Finest' actress says her dramatic departure from the television talent show was 'so surprising and so heartbreaking and so frustrating and so unnecessary.'

• Aug 26, 2020

AceShowbiz - Gabrielle Union's exit from "America's Got Talent" was one of the hardest things she's ever dealt with.

The "L.A.'s Finest" star recalled her experience during the "Minding Her Business" panel discussion at the virtual American Black Film Festival, labelling it "so surprising and so heartbreaking and so frustrating and so unnecessary."

Union, who departed the NBC show after just one series as a judge amid allegations of harassment and discrimination she witnessed and experienced during season 14, explained that it "(felt) like such a public flogging" and led to her "standing in my truth and standing on the side of employee rights and knowing there's a better way of doing business."

She added, "But that whole process was really brutal and knowing that I brought my team into that, it just sucked."

NBC officials launched an investigation into the show after Union claimed there was racism behind the scenes, but had found no wrongdoing by May, 2020.

In June, she filed a harassment complaint against NBC, claiming NBC's entertainment chief Paul Telegdy - who is currently under investigation by the network - tried to silence her reports of racism.

Union called NBC "a snake pit of racial offences" and later alleged that representatives for the organisation had threatened her agent.