Warner Bros. TV Group previously suspended Arrowverse co-creator/executive producer Andrew Kreisberg after allegations of sexual harassment. He has now been fired.
Update (11/29/17): Warner Bros. TV has fired Andrew Kreisberg after an investigation into sexual harassment claims from multiple women. Kreisberg was suspending pending the investigation earlier this month.
THR reports that Kreisberg has been fired from Supergirl, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, Arrow and the animated Vixen. He also also lost his overall deal with Warner Bros.
In a statement, WB said,
After a thorough investigation, Warner Bros. Television Group has terminated Andrew Kreisberg’s employment, effective immediately. Greg Berlanti will assume additional responsibilities on both The Flash, where he will work closely with executive producer/co-showrunner Todd Helbing, and Supergirl, where he will work closely with executive producers/co-showrunners Robert Rovner and Jessica Queller. We remain committed to providing a safe working environment for our employees and everyone involved in our productions.
Additionally, Berlanti and Sarah Schechter released a statement saying,
Warner Bros. Television Group recently concluded its investigation into the allegations against Andrew Kreisberg. We encouraged and supported this investigation, we believe and support the individuals who came forward, and we agree with the studio’s decision. Nothing is more important to us than the safety and well-being of all our colleagues — co-workers, crew and staff alike.
Top producers, including Berlanti, recently visited the Arrowverse sets in Vancouver to “ease concerns with the cast, crew and others involved in the production,” reports THR.
Original story (11/11/17): Along with suspending Kreisberg, who served as EP for Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl and Legends of Tomorrow, WBTV is launching an internal investigation into the allegations. Variety cites 19 sources, 15 women and 4 men, in reporting a years-long pattern of sexual harassment by Kreisberg.
A statement from Warner Bros. TV Group states,
We have recently been made aware of allegations of misconduct against Andrew Kreisberg. We have suspended Mr. Kreisberg and are conducting an internal investigation. We take all allegations of misconduct extremely seriously, and are committed to creating a safe working environment for our employees and everyone involved in our productions.
Additionally, a statement from Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter, the heads of Berlanti Productions, which oversees the Arrowverse, states,
We were recently made aware of some deeply troubling allegations regarding one of our showrunner. We have been encouraging and fully cooperating with the investigation into this by Warner Bros. There is nothing more important to us than the safety and well-being of our cast, crew, writers, producers and any staff. We do not tolerate harassment and are committed to doing everything we can to make an environment that’s safe to work in and safe to speak up about if it isn’t.
Kreisberg allegedly created a hostile work environment, especially for female employees, by subjecting staffers to touching without permission, kissing without permission and sexualized comments among other offenses. Several staffers quit their jobs as a result of their discomfort around Kreisberg.
A male writer for one of the CW shows under Kreisberg tells Variety, “It was an environment in which women — assistants, writers, executives, directors — were all evaluated based on their bodies, not on their work.”
Another report is of Kreisberg telling a female co-worker, “Wow, you look so tired that I don’t even want to have sex with you anymore” in front of her children.
Kreisberg reportedly harassed men as well; a male staffer claims that when he was leaning on a coworker’s desk, talking, Kreisberg “came in, placed his hands on the man’s posterior and began pretending to have sex with him, saying something like, ‘Well, if you’re offering.'”
Kreisberg denies the accusations.
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