ICM Partners has been quite public about trying to reform its own workplace culture. But according to a story published in the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday, working at the high-powered agency can still be a traumatic experience for many lower-level employees.
The article documented a workplace where agents and other supervisors felt free to take out their frustrations on their assistants, screaming at them, demeaning them and making them feel worthless. The story also cited two examples of alleged sexual harassment against non-employees. The overall picture is one that is fairly common in Hollywood — a place where low-status employees are expected to bear the brunt of their bosses’ tirades without complaint.
“What goes on in these agencies, you don’t see in any other industry,” said employment attorney Carney Shegerian. “You don’t see other employers trying to get away with what they do in entertainment.”
Around Hollywood, many...
The article documented a workplace where agents and other supervisors felt free to take out their frustrations on their assistants, screaming at them, demeaning them and making them feel worthless. The story also cited two examples of alleged sexual harassment against non-employees. The overall picture is one that is fairly common in Hollywood — a place where low-status employees are expected to bear the brunt of their bosses’ tirades without complaint.
“What goes on in these agencies, you don’t see in any other industry,” said employment attorney Carney Shegerian. “You don’t see other employers trying to get away with what they do in entertainment.”
Around Hollywood, many...
- 5/5/2021
- by Gene Maddaus and Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Hollywood is starting to speak up about film and Broadway producer Scott Rudin’s long, alleged history of abusive behavior toward staff and collaborators. Rudin’s behavior has been heavily documented in both a Hollywood Reporter exposé and a Vulture.com deep dive.
On Saturday, the New York Times published an extensive story interviewing such erstwhile Rudin collaborators as Rita Wilson, David Geffen, Robert Fox, and playwright Adam Rapp. In one particularly harrowing section, Wilson talked about her experience working with Rudin on Broadway for Larry David’s 2015 play “Fish in the Dark,” the same year she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“When she told Mr. Rudin the news, she said, he complained that she would need time off during Tony voting season and asked to see her medical records, while Anna Shapiro, the director, grew upset about having to find a replacement,” the story reads. “A few days later,...
On Saturday, the New York Times published an extensive story interviewing such erstwhile Rudin collaborators as Rita Wilson, David Geffen, Robert Fox, and playwright Adam Rapp. In one particularly harrowing section, Wilson talked about her experience working with Rudin on Broadway for Larry David’s 2015 play “Fish in the Dark,” the same year she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“When she told Mr. Rudin the news, she said, he complained that she would need time off during Tony voting season and asked to see her medical records, while Anna Shapiro, the director, grew upset about having to find a replacement,” the story reads. “A few days later,...
- 4/24/2021
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
Novelist Michael Chabon has issued a lengthy apology for not speaking up sooner about producer Scott Rudin’s abuses, saying that he witnessed Rudin mistreat his staff but kept quiet about it because he accepted that was how Hollywood worked.
“I’m ashamed,” Chabon wrote on Medium. “I regret, and I want to apologize for, my part in enabling Scott Rudin’s abuse, simply by standing by, saying nothing, looking the other way.”
Rudin produced “Wonder Boys,” an adaptation of Chabon’s novel, and worked with him on a never-realized adaption of “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay,” the novel for which Chabon won the Pulitzer Prize. He also optioned Chabon’s first script, “The Gentleman Host,” in 1994.
Chabon is among the highest profile figures to criticize Rudin since the Hollywood Reporter published a cover story documenting his abuses on April 7. On Thursday, Vulture added to the record, relaying...
“I’m ashamed,” Chabon wrote on Medium. “I regret, and I want to apologize for, my part in enabling Scott Rudin’s abuse, simply by standing by, saying nothing, looking the other way.”
Rudin produced “Wonder Boys,” an adaptation of Chabon’s novel, and worked with him on a never-realized adaption of “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay,” the novel for which Chabon won the Pulitzer Prize. He also optioned Chabon’s first script, “The Gentleman Host,” in 1994.
Chabon is among the highest profile figures to criticize Rudin since the Hollywood Reporter published a cover story documenting his abuses on April 7. On Thursday, Vulture added to the record, relaying...
- 4/23/2021
- by Gene Maddaus
- Variety Film + TV
Michael Chabon, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his 2000 novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay and worked for years with producer Scott Rudin on an unrealized film adaptation, has written a lengthy mea culpa – titled Apology of a Rudin Apologist – in which he expresses shame and regret for “enabling Scott Rudin’s abuse.”
In a nearly 1,400-word essay posted today on Medium, Chabon writes of both witnessing and receiving the producer’s abuse.
“I heard stories of Scott’s tantrums and vindictiveness, but not of smashed hands and people pushed out of moving cars,” writes Chabon, whose first screenplay was optioned by Rudin in 1994. “But I knew enough. I regularly, even routinely, heard him treat his staff, from the new kid doing the coffee run to the guy just under Scott on the Srp organizational chart, with what I would call a careful, even surgical contempt, like a torturer...
In a nearly 1,400-word essay posted today on Medium, Chabon writes of both witnessing and receiving the producer’s abuse.
“I heard stories of Scott’s tantrums and vindictiveness, but not of smashed hands and people pushed out of moving cars,” writes Chabon, whose first screenplay was optioned by Rudin in 1994. “But I knew enough. I regularly, even routinely, heard him treat his staff, from the new kid doing the coffee run to the guy just under Scott on the Srp organizational chart, with what I would call a careful, even surgical contempt, like a torturer...
- 4/23/2021
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
“The abuse they suffered and were expected to endure at Scott Rudin Productions, has broken my heart,” author says
Pulitzer-winning author and screenwriter Michael Chabon has broken his silence on Scott Rudin, saying that he is “ashamed” for not speaking up about Rudin’s “abusive behavior” toward staffers after 20 years of working with the Egot winner.
Though Chabon said he did not witness many of the stories that have been described in the recent Hollywood Reporter exposé and elsewhere, writing that he never saw Rudin use “vulgar or demeaning epithets” or cause physical injury. But he said he often witnessed Rudin’s outbursts and anger and acted as though nothing had happened. He acknowledges that it does not exonerate him for not speaking out, and that he “knew enough.”
“Reading the accounts of Scott Rudin’s present and former employees, of the abuse they suffered and were expected to endure at Scott Rudin Productions,...
Pulitzer-winning author and screenwriter Michael Chabon has broken his silence on Scott Rudin, saying that he is “ashamed” for not speaking up about Rudin’s “abusive behavior” toward staffers after 20 years of working with the Egot winner.
Though Chabon said he did not witness many of the stories that have been described in the recent Hollywood Reporter exposé and elsewhere, writing that he never saw Rudin use “vulgar or demeaning epithets” or cause physical injury. But he said he often witnessed Rudin’s outbursts and anger and acted as though nothing had happened. He acknowledges that it does not exonerate him for not speaking out, and that he “knew enough.”
“Reading the accounts of Scott Rudin’s present and former employees, of the abuse they suffered and were expected to endure at Scott Rudin Productions,...
- 4/23/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Screenwriter Michael Chabon, a longtime collaborator of Scott Rudin, is speaking out in the wake of The Hollywood Reporter’s April 7 cover story on allegations made against the producer.
In a column on Medium shared on Friday, Chabon writes that he “regularly collaborated” with Rudin — including the 2000 film adaptation of one of Chabon’s novels Wonder Boys and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay — and, by doing so, “worked with and got to know many of his employees — a generation of them — from the VPs, to the researchers, to the assistants who worked the phones” including Kevin Graham-Caso ,...
In a column on Medium shared on Friday, Chabon writes that he “regularly collaborated” with Rudin — including the 2000 film adaptation of one of Chabon’s novels Wonder Boys and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay — and, by doing so, “worked with and got to know many of his employees — a generation of them — from the VPs, to the researchers, to the assistants who worked the phones” including Kevin Graham-Caso ,...
- 4/23/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Screenwriter Michael Chabon, a longtime collaborator of Scott Rudin, is speaking out in the wake of The Hollywood Reporter’s April 7 cover story on allegations made against the producer.
In a column on Medium shared on Friday, Chabon writes that he “regularly collaborated” with Rudin — including the 2000 film adaptation of one of Chabon’s novels Wonder Boys and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay — and, by doing so, “worked with and got to know many of his employees — a generation of them — from the VPs, to the researchers, to the assistants who worked the phones” including Kevin Graham-Caso ,...
In a column on Medium shared on Friday, Chabon writes that he “regularly collaborated” with Rudin — including the 2000 film adaptation of one of Chabon’s novels Wonder Boys and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay — and, by doing so, “worked with and got to know many of his employees — a generation of them — from the VPs, to the researchers, to the assistants who worked the phones” including Kevin Graham-Caso ,...
- 4/23/2021
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Scott Rudin has had a public reputation as an abusive boss for decades. But this week, for the first time, he began to experience some consequences for it.
A24 let it be known that it was cutting ties with the producer, who had delivered such films as “Lady Bird” and “Uncut Gems.” Rudin was compelled to “step back” from his Broadway work, and when that didn’t stop the drumbeat, he dropped out of his film and streaming projects as well.
The accountability remains tentative, as the vast majority of stars and directors who have worked with him over the years have stayed silent. But experts on workplace bullying are watching closely to see if Rudin’s case will do for their issue what Harvey Weinstein did for sexual harassment.
“I think it puts bullying front and center, as opposed to other serious concerns we see,” said David Yamada, professor at Suffolk University Law School,...
A24 let it be known that it was cutting ties with the producer, who had delivered such films as “Lady Bird” and “Uncut Gems.” Rudin was compelled to “step back” from his Broadway work, and when that didn’t stop the drumbeat, he dropped out of his film and streaming projects as well.
The accountability remains tentative, as the vast majority of stars and directors who have worked with him over the years have stayed silent. But experts on workplace bullying are watching closely to see if Rudin’s case will do for their issue what Harvey Weinstein did for sexual harassment.
“I think it puts bullying front and center, as opposed to other serious concerns we see,” said David Yamada, professor at Suffolk University Law School,...
- 4/22/2021
- by Gene Maddaus
- Variety Film + TV
In response to recent and explosive allegations about producer Scott Rudin’s workplace behavior, the Producers Guild of America is forming a task force to combat bullying in Hollywood.
“We are deeply disturbed and disheartened by the continuing allegations of workplace harassment and abuse in our industry, and stand with those who speak out against such violence and intimidation in all forms,” a Thursday PGA statement read, without directly naming Rudin, who stands accused of physical violence and verbal torment by former employees.
The guild has pledged to form a task force to examine bullying and harassment in its membership and the industry at large.
“We must work together to make our industry a more equitable and safe place for everyone involved, no matter what their level or role. As a first step, the Producers Guild will be expanding our Independent Production Safety Initiative (Ipsi) to include anti-bullying trainings with...
“We are deeply disturbed and disheartened by the continuing allegations of workplace harassment and abuse in our industry, and stand with those who speak out against such violence and intimidation in all forms,” a Thursday PGA statement read, without directly naming Rudin, who stands accused of physical violence and verbal torment by former employees.
The guild has pledged to form a task force to examine bullying and harassment in its membership and the industry at large.
“We must work together to make our industry a more equitable and safe place for everyone involved, no matter what their level or role. As a first step, the Producers Guild will be expanding our Independent Production Safety Initiative (Ipsi) to include anti-bullying trainings with...
- 4/22/2021
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
Scott Rudin is no longer involved with five A24 film productions, including Joel Coen’s “The Tragedy of Macbeth” and the Alex Garland film “Men,” a source told TheWrap.
The five films are “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” “The Humans,” “Red, White and Water” and “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” which are all in post, as well as “Men” currently in production, effectively ending his longstanding relationship with the studio. It remains unclear whether Rudin’s name will be removed from the credits of the films or if other producers will fill in for Rudin.
A24 had no comment. A representative for Rudin did not immediately respond to a new request for comment.
The news comes after Rudin said on Tuesday that he would be “stepping back” from his film and streaming projects, in addition to his Broadway projects that he first announced on Saturday, after a THR article in which...
The five films are “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” “The Humans,” “Red, White and Water” and “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” which are all in post, as well as “Men” currently in production, effectively ending his longstanding relationship with the studio. It remains unclear whether Rudin’s name will be removed from the credits of the films or if other producers will fill in for Rudin.
A24 had no comment. A representative for Rudin did not immediately respond to a new request for comment.
The news comes after Rudin said on Tuesday that he would be “stepping back” from his film and streaming projects, in addition to his Broadway projects that he first announced on Saturday, after a THR article in which...
- 4/20/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Scott Rudin has now announced that he will also take a step back from his film and streaming productions after announcing over the weekend that he would step back from his Broadway productions.
In a new statement issued Tuesday, Rudin reiterated his apology for “the pain my behavior has caused.” Rudin was accused in an April 7 article in THR by several named former assistants and employees of physical and mental abuse, including allegedly breaking a computer monitor on an assistant’s hand and throwing objects like potatoes and glass bowls at staffers. A rep for Rudin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“When I commented over the weekend, I was focused on Broadway reopening successfully and not wanting my previous behavior to detract from everyone’s efforts to return,” Rudin said. “It’s clear to me I should take the same path in film and streaming. I...
In a new statement issued Tuesday, Rudin reiterated his apology for “the pain my behavior has caused.” Rudin was accused in an April 7 article in THR by several named former assistants and employees of physical and mental abuse, including allegedly breaking a computer monitor on an assistant’s hand and throwing objects like potatoes and glass bowls at staffers. A rep for Rudin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“When I commented over the weekend, I was focused on Broadway reopening successfully and not wanting my previous behavior to detract from everyone’s efforts to return,” Rudin said. “It’s clear to me I should take the same path in film and streaming. I...
- 4/20/2021
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
Producer Scott Rudin will “step back” from his film and streaming projects in addition to his Broadway productions in the wake of allegations about his abusive workplace behavior. Rudin, whose upcoming films include Netflix’s “The Woman in the Window” and A24’s “The Humans,” said he will “take the time to work on personal issues I should have long ago.”
The announcement comes as top talent and studios had grown wary of working with Rudin following a report in The Hollywood Reporter that provided detailed accounts of bullying of subordinates. The new comments follow a Saturday missive in which Rudin said he was “stepping back” from Broadway, his primary axis of power over the last decade. He has produced such hits as “The Book of Mormon” and “To Kill a Mockingbird.”
“When I commented over the weekend, I was focused on Broadway reopening successfully and not wanting my previous...
The announcement comes as top talent and studios had grown wary of working with Rudin following a report in The Hollywood Reporter that provided detailed accounts of bullying of subordinates. The new comments follow a Saturday missive in which Rudin said he was “stepping back” from Broadway, his primary axis of power over the last decade. He has produced such hits as “The Book of Mormon” and “To Kill a Mockingbird.”
“When I commented over the weekend, I was focused on Broadway reopening successfully and not wanting my previous...
- 4/20/2021
- by Brent Lang and Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
In the wake of Kevin Graham-Caso’s suicide last October, his friends pored over his old emails, looking for answers. Klodiana Alia found one from 2009, when Graham-Caso was working as an assistant to producer Scott Rudin. At the time, Graham-Caso was looking for another job, and Rudin had gotten wind of it.
“He flipped out,” Graham-Caso wrote, “told me to lose his number and that I was dead to him and an enemy of his company and that he hopes I fail in life.”
In another email, he wrote: “I think the time at Rudin permanently fucked my nerves. I never used to get this worked up over stuff.”
Graham-Caso’s story is now at the center of a reckoning over the way assistants are treated in Hollywood. On Sunday night, his twin brother, David Graham-Caso, posted a two-minute video accusing Rudin of inflicting intense emotional abuse that led him to suffer anxiety and depression.
“He flipped out,” Graham-Caso wrote, “told me to lose his number and that I was dead to him and an enemy of his company and that he hopes I fail in life.”
In another email, he wrote: “I think the time at Rudin permanently fucked my nerves. I never used to get this worked up over stuff.”
Graham-Caso’s story is now at the center of a reckoning over the way assistants are treated in Hollywood. On Sunday night, his twin brother, David Graham-Caso, posted a two-minute video accusing Rudin of inflicting intense emotional abuse that led him to suffer anxiety and depression.
- 4/19/2021
- by Gene Maddaus
- Variety Film + TV
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