Content Warning: This article discusses sexual assault. If you or someone you know is affected by the following story, you are not alone. To speak to someone, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
Ricky Gervais has spoken on the current sexual assault allegations against one of his long-time collaborators – who is also a producer of his show After Life and more.
The producer in question, Charlie Hanson is currently under investigation, with his production company Unstoppable also being investigated. His show Bulletproof has since been cancelled by Sky.
As per Variety, over the weekend the U.K. newspaper, The Times brought to light the allegations against Hanson, prompting a response from Gervais.
And now Gervais himself has commented on the allegations, saying, “I am shocked and appalled to learn of the historical allegations made by a number of women against Charlie Hanson. The decision was made to immediately remove him from production and I am confident the matter is being handled thoroughly.”
As part of The Times newspaper report, they also shared an excerpt of an email which was written by a number of his accusers and sent to Netflix and BAFTA. They wrote, “Charlie Hanson is a predator who uses his reputation, connections and standing in order to groom far younger, impressionable and sometimes vulnerable women into trusting him.”
They continued, “At times he will promise them a starry career under his wing, and then exploits that trust in creepy and illegal ways,” continued the letter. “He then tries to diminish the seriousness of what he’s done by telling these young women — us — that it wasn’t as bad as it seemed, that it was somehow blameless. He does his best to convince himself — and others — that this method of operating is fine. But we know it is not fine.”
Hanson has denied the allegations, “Based on the summaries that have been provided to me, I understand that many of these accusations are made anonymously and are demonstrably false.” He has also worked on the following projects with Gervais: Life’s Too Short, Derek, Extras and Cemetery Junction.
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