Earlier today, we touched on a new THR report that profiled the alleged years of abusive behavior that superstar producer Scott Rudin has perpetrated against colleagues and employees. The profile also goes a long way to explain how this is not news to many people who have worked in the industry, as there have been written reports about accusations over the years, with a lot of it being swept under the rug because Rudin is also a producer that works with some of the biggest, most respected talent in Hollywood. But in light of the #MeToo movement, Time’s Up, and various other campaigns to call out bad behavior in film and TV, the most recent profile of Rudin’s exploits is gaining traction, thanks in no small part to corroborating comments from folks like Megan Ellison.
Without getting too much into the disgusting details (which, again, can be read in full at THR), Scott Rudin has allegedly verbally and physically abused dozens of assistants and colleagues over the decades, earning a reputation of being one of the most terrible people to work under in Hollywood. But then again, he seemingly is able to get away with it because the man has a knack for working with some of the best people in the industry, including names like the Coen Brothers, Noah Baumbach, Alex Garland, the Safdies, Danny Boyle, Greta Gerwig, and more.
Well, after the new report, one of the people Rudin worked with in the past, Megan Ellison, a producer behind Annapurna Pictures, spoke up to explain the already-gross details given in the THR profile don’t even come close to detailing everything he’s done in the past.
In her tweet, Ellison said, “This piece barely scratches the surface of Scott Rudin’s abusive, racist, and sexist behavior. Similar to Harvey [Weinstein], too many are afraid to speak out. I support and applaud those who did. There’s good reason to be afraid because he’s vindictive and has no qualms about lying.”
The new report features stories of physical abuse including smashing an assistant’s hand with a computer monitor, as well as a ton of stories about how he would verbally berate people close enough for them to feel his spit on their face. And as Ellison alludes to in her tweet, there are also plenty of stories of Rudin allegedly lying to other studio folks to have them fire or not work with people he didn’t like. Again, there’s a lot more, but according to Ellison, this is stuff that barely scratches the surface.
Much like the Harvey Weinstein investigation and ended with the producer being shunned from Hollywood and eventually convicted of rape, it’ll be interesting to see what the fallout is from these latest Rudin accusations. Will we see folks like Joel Coen, who is working with Rudin on the new film, “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” distance themselves from the producer? Will the stars of that film, Frances McDormand and Denzel Washington, have anything to say? What about folks like Jennifer Lawrence, who is starring in the Rudin-produced film, “Red, White, and Water?” Clearly, this is a story that is still developing and will have plenty more brought to light in the days to come.