Television network AMC has taken the show “Talking with Chris Hardwick” off the air in response to allegations of sexual assault made against the TV personality and comedian by his ex-girlfriend, Chloe Dykstra. Hardwick has also been removed from hosting AMC and BBC panels at San Diego Comic-Con next month.
The show was meant to resume new episodes soon (with Donald Glover set to be the next guest), but AMC put out a statement saying it will halt production on the show as the allegations are assessed further.
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.
As well, NBC is debating what to do with their Hardwick-hosted game show “The Wall” which was set to start production on new episodes this September. The network gave an official statement to THR recently saying, “These allegations about Chris Hardwick took us by surprise as we have had a positive working relationship with him. However, we take allegations of misconduct very seriously. Production on The Wall does not begin until September, and in the meantime, we are continuing to assess the situation and will take appropriate action based on the outcome.”
As well, the geek-centric website co-founded by Hardwick, Nerdist, put out a statement saying, “We were shocked to read the news this morning. Nerdist prides itself on being an inclusive company made up of a positive, diverse community of people who come together to share, celebrate, and discuss the things we love. That type of behavior is contrary to everything we stand for and believe in, and we absolutely don’t tolerate discrimination, harassment, and other forms of abuse.”
All mention of Hardwick has been taken off the website, and although he was the CEO of Nerdist Industries, the site’s parent company, Legendary Entertainment, put out a statement saying that Hardwick had not had any operational involvement with the site for at least two years before his contract expired in December 2017.
The allegations against Hardwick came to light Friday when Dykstra penned an essay titled “Rose-Colored Glasses: A Confession” on Medium in which she claimed a former boyfriend sexually abused her while they were dating. Hardwick was never directly named in the piece but through several context clues – like where she says “I watched and supported him as he grew from a mildly successful podcaster to a powerhouse CEO of his own company” – it was quickly determined to be Hardwick she was referring. As part of the abuse, Dykstra claimed he set up a series of rules she had to follow, including not being able to have close male friends, and that she had to “be ready for him” when he came home at night.
Hardwick has since denied the allegations, saying, “I'm devastated to read that she is now accusing me of conduct that did not occur. I was blindsided by her post and always wanted the best for her. As a husband, a son, and future father, I do not condone any kind of mistreatment of women.” As for their relationship, Hardwick said, "Our three year relationship was not perfect—we were ultimately not a good match and argued—even shouted at each other—but I loved her, and did my best to uplift and support her as a partner and companion in any way and at no time did I sexually assault her.”