Undead Walking
Fansided

Chris Hardwick: AMC parts ways amid allegations

By Sarabeth Pollock

SAN DIEGO, CA - JULY 22: Moderator Chris Hardwick at the San Diego Comic-Con International 2017 Marvel Studios Panel in Hall H on July 22, 2017 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
SAN DIEGO, CA - JULY 22: Moderator Chris Hardwick at the San Diego Comic-Con International 2017 Marvel Studios Panel in Hall H on July 22, 2017 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney) /
facebooktwitterreddit

AMC pulls the plug on Talking with Chris Hardwick and will seek another host for the network’s San Diego Comic Con panels in light of sexual assault allegations.

AMC has decided to part ways with Chris Hardwick amid allegations of sexual assault and emotional abuse from his former girlfriend, Chloe Dykstra. The decision comes one day after Dykstra posted her story on Medium, outlining years of emotional abuse and incidents of sexual assault. Though her essay did not refer to Hardwick by name, there was no question that she was referring to him, as the couple dated for several years.

AMC released the following statement about their decision:

"“We have had a positive working relationship with Chris Hardwick for many years. We take the troubling allegations that surfaced yesterday very seriously. While we assess the situation, ‘Talking with Chris Hardwick’ will not air on AMC, and Chris has decided to step aside from moderating planned AMC and BBC America panels at Comic-Con International in San Diego next month.”"

The AMC fallout comes a day after Hardwick’s name was erased from the Nerdist website, a company he founded. (He sold the company to Legendary Entertainment and has not been involved with the company since his contract expired in 2017)

Hardwick vehemently denies the claims brought against him, but AMC was forced to make a decision after guests scheduled to appear on Talking with Chris Hardwick expressed discomfort about appearing on the show amid the allegations, which was set to debut on June 17 now that The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead are on hiatus. The shows started taping weeks ago, but the optics are such that guest reps suggested the show’s debut at least be pushed back until the claims against Hardwick are investigated.

Next: Undead Walking is looking for new writers to join the team

Hardwick was scheduled to moderate the AMC panels at San Diego Comic Con in July, and BBC America had announced on Thursday that he would moderate their Doctor Who panel featuring the show’s first female Doctor.

We’ll continue to keep you updated at this story develops.

Home/Breaking News