Everyone grieves in their own way. As fans and friends of dancer/actor Stephen “tWitch” Boss come to terms with his death, many are still struggling with the question of why. Unfortunately, some of those questions lead to unconfirmed guesses, which causes the internet to run wild with theories and not facts. Personally, I feel that it’s too early to publicly speculate about what the entertainer may have been going through. However, I also understand that it’s human nature to grasp for answers in an unimaginable situation like this. We can’t help it, we need to know why we didn’t see the warning signs and what we could have done differently to help him. One unconfirmed theory making rounds comes from actor Columbus Short, who co-starred with tWitch in the 2010 film Stomp the Yard: Homecoming.
According to the New York Post, on Thursday, in a now deleted video on Instagram, Short speculated that the So You Think You Can Dance star had financial troubles that led him to take his own life.
“People made investments, people do a lot of things—this is just a theory,” Short said. “What if you invested something that took your whole life savings, possibly?...It gets rough.”
Short could be referring to cryptocurrency, which other parts of the internet are speculating Boss invested in. Keep in mind, this is based on people tracking what social media accounts he followed and interacted with. To be clear, there have been no confirmed reports from any member of Boss’ family about his finances at the time of his death.
The Scandal actor went on to add, “You guys don’t know what people are going through…People are awful…tWitch was amazing, is amazing still—his legacy shall live on.”
TMZ is reporting that Short’s claims are not true, with its sources saying “Stephen was not experiencing any sort of financial hardship in the time leading up to his [death].” The outlet goes on to report that tWitch and Short had a strictly working relationship and knew one another “through the dance world.”
People is also disputing reports of Boss’ financial issues, as its sources say tWitch and his wife, Allison Holker Boss, had “multiple shows, brand deals and projects in pre-production for the upcoming year.”
Truth is none of us really knows, not TMZ, not People and not us. As previously reported by The Root, Stephen checked into a motel near his home on Monday, then his body was discovered dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound Tuesday morning. In addition to his work on So You Think You Can Dance, tWitch was most well known for his time as the DJ on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, as well as his roles in Magic Mike XXL and the Step Up franchise.
It’s possible that Short is just working through the grief of losing someone he considered a friend, and trying to find meaning in a tragic situation. It’s natural to need someplace to put the blame when we lose someone who was seen as such a positive light in the world. tWitch had everything to live for and it’s really hard to figure out how he got to such a dark place. However, we all know how dangerous unconfirmed speculation is in a situation like this, so everyone needs to be careful about how they discuss Stephen’s passing.
If you or someone you know needs help, please reach out at the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988.