By Joe Flint
Comedian Louis C.K. expressed remorse for his behavior in the
wake of several women recounting incidents of sexual misconduct in
a report that caused entertainment companies to cut ties with
him.
On Thursday, the New York Times reported accounts from five
women who said Mr. C.K. had masturbated in front of them or during
a phone call, or requested to do so. While some of the women said
Mr. C.K. had asked permission first, some thought he was joking and
then were stunned when he proceeded, according to the report.
Another woman, fearing potential career repercussions, reluctantly
said yes.
In a statement, Mr. C.K. said the accounts in the article were
true, and he acknowledged abusing his power in those
situations.
"The hardest regret to live with is what you've done to hurt
someone else. And I can hardly wrap my head around the scope of
hurt I brought on them," he said. "There is nothing about this that
I forgive myself for."
On the heels of the Times report, media firms began severing
ties with the comedian. Netflix Inc. canceled the production of an
upcoming stand-up comedy special with Mr. C.K., and the release of
a movie he starred in and directed was canceled. FX ended its
entire production deal with him Friday after the comedian's
admission.
Mr. C.K. also expressed remorse toward the companies and
individuals who have supported him.
"I'd be remiss to exclude the hurt that I've brought on people
who I work with and have worked with who's professional and
personal lives have been impacted by all of this," he wrote.
The movie, "I Love You, Daddy," which Mr. C.K. wrote, directed
and stars in, won't be released, according to The Orchard, the
distributor of the movie.
Time Warner Inc.'s HBO said Mr. C.K. would no longer appear on
the pay-TV channel's "Night of Too Many Stars," a benefit to
support autism hosted by Jon Stewart, which is scheduled to air
Nov. 18. HBO also said it was removing the stand-up specials the
comedian had done for the network from its on-demand offerings.
Netflix, which had signed Mr. C.K. to a deal for two stand-up
specials, called the reports of his behavior "unprofessional and
inappropriate" and said it wouldn't produce the second special as
planned. The first premiered earlier this year. Unlike HBO, Netflix
won't scrub its platform of the comedian's content.
21st Century Fox has long ties to Mr. C.K. whose surname is
Szekely. Besides his stand-up comedy work, Mr. C.K. starred in the
Emmy-award winning dark comedy "Louie" on Fox's FX channel and is
an executive producer on some of the network's series.
FX Networks and FX Productions canceled its overall deal with
Mr. C.K.'s production company on Friday and said the comedian will
no longer serve as executive producer or receive pay from any of
the shows it has been producing with him -- "Better Things,"
"Baskets," "One Mississippi" and "The Cops."
FX said it wasn't aware of any misconduct by the comedian on any
of the projects he has been involved in over the past eight years.
"However, now is not the time for him to make television shows," FX
said in a statement. "Now is the time for him to honestly address
the women who have come forth to speak about their painful
experiences, a process which he began today with his public
statement."
21st Century Fox and Wall Street Journal parent News Corp share
common ownership.
Production has been suspended on "The Cops," an animated show
that was in development to be produced by FX for Time Warner's TBS
network, TBS's parent Turner said Friday. Mr. C.K. was to provide a
voice on the show.
Here is Louis C.K.'s full statement:
I want to address the stories told to the New York Times by five
women named Abby, Rebecca, Dana, Julia who felt able to name
themselves and one who did not.
These stories are true. At the time, I said to myself that what
I did was okay because I never showed a woman my dick without
asking first, which is also true. But what I learned later in life,
too late, is that when you have power over another person, asking
them to look at your dick isn't a question. It's a predicament for
them. The power I had over these women is that they admired me. And
I wielded that power irresponsibly.
I have been remorseful of my actions. And I've tried to learn
from them. And run from them. Now I'm aware of the extent of the
impact of my actions. I learned yesterday the extent to which I
left these women who admired me feeling badly about themselves and
cautious around other men who would never have put them in that
position.
I also took advantage of the fact that I was widely admired in
my and their community, which disabled them from sharing their
story and brought hardship to them when they tried because people
who look up to me didn't want to hear it. I didn't think that I was
doing any of that because my position allowed me not to think about
it.
There is nothing about this that I forgive myself for. And I
have to reconcile it with who I am. Which is nothing compared to
the task I left them with.
I wish I had reacted to their admiration of me by being a good
example to them as a man and given them some guidance as a
comedian, including because I admired their work.
The hardest regret to live with is what you've done to hurt
someone else. And I can hardly wrap my head around the scope of
hurt I brought on them. I'd be remiss to exclude the hurt that I've
brought on people who I work with and have worked with who's
professional and personal lives have been impacted by all of this,
including projects currently in production: the cast and crew of
Better Things, Baskets, The Cops, One Mississippi, and I Love You
Daddy. I deeply regret that this has brought negative attention to
my manager Dave Becky who only tried to mediate a situation that I
caused. I've brought anguish and hardship to the people at FX who
have given me so much The Orchard who took a chance on my movie.
and every other entity that has bet on me through the years.
I've brought pain to my family, my friends, my children and
their mother.
I have spent my long and lucky career talking and saying
anything I want. I will now step back and take a long time to
listen.
Thank you for reading.
Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 10, 2017 17:40 ET (22:40 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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