HBO Drops Louis C.K. After Sexual Misconduct Report, FX Reviewing Ties
The entertainment world is understandably reevaluating partnerships with Louis C.K. in the wake of Thursday’s bombshell report. HBO has opted to remove the comedian from its upcoming autism benefit and streaming library, while FX is rethinking its own relationship with C.K.
Mid-Thursday saw no less than five women come forth against Louis C.K., crystallizing a history of sexual misconduct and predatory behavior that had followed the comedian for some years. Even before the New York Times published its story, word of its content was enough to pull a premiere for C.K.’s film I Love You, Daddy, as well as an appearance on Colbert.
HBO acted immediately to sever its relationship with C.K.; first ousting the comedian from Jon Stewart’s upcoming Night of Too Many Stars benefit for autism, and next removing the comedian’s content from its on-demand library. That includes comedy specials One Night Stand, Shameless and Oh My God, as well as C.K.’s 2006 comedy series Lucky Louie, which itself co-starred C.K.’s frequent comedy partner Pamela Adlon.
On that note, C.K. currently acts as executive producer to Adlon’s revered FX comedy Better Things, though their network took a less forthright stance in response to the allegations. The company sent out a statement suggesting its ties with C.K. were under review, though no immediate actions would be taken:
We are obviously very troubled by the allegations about Louis C.K. published in The New York Times today. The network has received no allegations of misconduct by Louis C.K. related to any of our 5 shows produced together over the past 8 years. FX Networks and FXP take all necessary actions to protect our employees and thoroughly investigate any allegations of misconduct within our workplace. That said, the matter is currently under review.
C.K. also executive produces Zach Galifianakis comedy Baskets, and was previously said to have an open invitation to return to his Emmy-winning FX comedy, Louie. Other developments are sure to follow, so stay tuned for the latest.
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