Lionsgate Exec Andrew Kramer Exited After Harassment Allegation (Exclusive)

Lionsgate executive Andrew Kramer’s recent exit from the independent studio followed allegations that he harassed a subordinate, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Kramer had served as COO of International for Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group since 2013. Prior to that, he spent seven years at The Weinstein Co., where he was president of business and legal affairs and general counsel.

When word of Kramer’s departure from Lionsgate first broke on Thursday, insiders said it was because of a restructuring prompted by the recent hire of Joe Drake as co-president of the Motion Picture Group alongside Patrick Wachsberger. Numerous sources confirm the restructuring was a cause of his exit. However, these sources also say Kramer was recently investigated by the company for claims of an inappropriate interaction with a female assistant at the Berlin International Film Festival in February of this year. A senior Lionsgate executive who witnessed the exchange reported the incident, prompting an inquiry. The results of the investigative were inconclusive, according to the insiders. The assistant requested to be reassigned and was.

Kramer declined to comment. A spokesperson for Lionsgate also declined to comment, saying the company does not discuss personnel matters. Sources close to the company stress that the chief reason for severing ties with Kramer was because of the restructuring, not the harassment allegation, though the claim “didn’t help.”

Across the entertainment industry, companies are beginning to actively enforce a policy of zero-tolerance when it comes to harassment in the wake of the sexual misconduct scandal engulfing Harvey Weinstein and, by extension, TWC.

Amazon Studios chief Roy Price resigned in recent days after after he was suspended on Oct. 13 for an incident taking place in summer 2015. The suspension followed a story in THR detailing the alleged harassment endured by Isa Hackett, executive producer of Amazon’s The Man in the High Castle and Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams. Hackett reported her encounter with Price to Amazon executives at the time, but he was not suspended until she went public with THR and the website The Information.

On Oct. 19, Nickelodeon fired Loud House creator Chris Savino after multiple women came forward with allegations of sexual harassment, unwanted advances and inappropriate behavior on the part of the showrunner.

And earlier this week, NBC News severed ties with analyst Mark Halperin after five women who worked with him at ABC News came forward with allegations of sexual harassment.

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