UPDATE 8/5/19 5:34 EST
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — ABC Entertainment President Karey Burke said Monday she is withholding judgment on the fate of “The Rookie” pending an investigation into co-star Afton Williamson’s claim that she endured sexual misconduct and racism during the show’s production.
The actress posted online Sunday that she’s quitting the ABC crime drama because of what she faced, including racist comments and bullying from a crew member that escalated into sexual assault at a wrap party, and an inadequate response from the show’s executive producers.
“I’m waiting for the results of the investigation, just as you are, to get more answers,” Burke said during a Q&A session with the Television Critics Association.
She said she learned in June that the show’s producer, Entertainment One, initiated a third-party investigation of the behavior that Williamson alleged took place during the crime drama’s first season that began airing in October 2018.
Burke was asked if ABC is concerned about whether it has inadequate oversight of shows made for the network or if it can trust the investigation.
“I’m hopeful those results will be independent and trustworthy and anticipate they will be,” Burke replied. “At that time, those answers and those conclusions will help guide us about how to handle situations like this in the future and if, in fact, there has been any sort of communication breakdown.”
There’s history, under Burke’s predecessor, Channing Dungey, of responding swiftly to a trouble-plagued series. When the network was faced in 2018 with a racist tweet by “Roseanne” star Roseanne Barr, the rebooted sitcom’s production was suspended. Barr was subsequently fired and the show was reinvented as “The Conners.”
It’s premature to decide the future of “The Rookie,” Burke said. The series, with Nathan Fillion in the title role of a new police officer, is set to return for its second season Sept. 29.
A representative for Williamson didn’t respond to messages seeking further details on the actress’s claims, or whether the alleged sexual assault was reported to the police.
ORIGINAL STORY:
NEW YORK (AP) — Afton Williamson, star of the ABC crime series “The Rookie,” says she’s quitting the show because of sexual harassment and racial discrimination she experienced during the show’s first season.
In an Instagram post Sunday, Williamson said throughout the filming of the show’s pilot, “I experienced racial discrimination/racially charged inappropriate comments from the hair department.” She said the treatment worsened when she was sexually harassed by a recurring guest star, bullied by executive producers and ultimately was sexually assaulted by a crew member at a wrap party.
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Representatives for ABC did not respond to messages Sunday.
A representative for Williamson didn’t immediately respond to messages seeking further details on the actress’s claims, or whether the alleged sexual assault was reported to the police.
Williamson also was highly critical of how her claims were handled by showrunner and executive producer Alexi Hawley. Williamson said she filed reports on the incidents but they weren’t seriously investigated by the network or shared by Hawley with other producers.
“After my initial report of sexual harassment, I was assured that the actor would be fired,” said Williamson of the guest star. “I was also asked to film with him the very next day as a courtesy to the script, even though we had not begun filming the episode yet.”
Representatives for Hawley didn’t immediately respond to messages Sunday.
Williamson co-starred in the Los Angeles-based ABC drama, a co-production between ABC Studios and Entertainment One. In the show, Nathan Fillion stars as a rookie police officer.
PHOTO: AP
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