THR Investigates
Les Moonves’ Compromised Cop: Hollywood Ties, Complicated Past
Earlier this month, former LAPD commander Cory Palka made headlines for purportedly conspiring with CBS and its former CEO to prevent an explosive sexual assault allegation from going public. But long before the onetime head of the Hollywood Division began working behind the scenes to suppress claims against Les Moonves, he had revealing associations with […]
- By
“Hiding in Plain Sight”: After Being Fired From ‘Scrubs’ for Misconduct, Alleged Rapist Eric Weinberg Kept Working
In 1998, Georgina, a 27-year-old college student, was enjoying a drink outside The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in Studio City when a tall man approached her. Introducing himself as Eric Weinberg, he complimented her looks and asked if she was a model. He offered to do headshots for her free of charge — a […]
- By
How Hollywood’s Favorite Charity Went Broke
On Oct. 24, the head of Hollywood’s most beloved charity, the century-old Motion Picture & Television Fund, warned of its “imminent demise” if it didn’t raise at least $10 million by the end of this year. CEO Bob Beitcher wrote in an open letter sent to industry members the next day that, since the onset of the pandemic, […]
- By
Inside the Secret ‘Rust’ Settlement: Why Did Halyna Hutchins’ Widower Drop His Suit to Become an Executive Producer?
A year after Alec Baldwin accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the New Mexico set of Rust, the producers, still facing civil litigation and under a cloud of potential criminal liability, are looking to finish the film in the next few months. Key to this gambit is a private settlement with Hutchins’ estate, […]
- By
Better Call Brad: Hollywood’s Secret Problem Solver Speaks
Not long ago, Brad Herman, the right-hand man to hush-hush Hollywood, invited a longtime client, legendary Motown songwriter Eddie Holland, to a private visit with another client, The Supremes’ Cindy Birdsong, who since September 2021 has resided in a Los Angeles-area care facility after two strokes that have left her unable to walk or speak. […]
- By
Hollywood COVID Compliance Officers Say Cutting Corners Is Common
During the height of the pandemic and in the months since, Hollywood productions routinely cut corners while trying to balance tight filming schedules against strict COVID-19 safety protocols, some insiders say. In September, a former HBO health adviser, Georgia Hesse, sued the company for wrongful termination, claiming she was fired for raising a red flag […]
- By
#MeToo, Five Years Later: Why Time’s Up Imploded
When it was founded in the months after the Harvey Weinstein scandal broke in 2017, Time’s Up was supposed to put Hollywood’s considerable power and money — and its sudden outrage — to work fighting sexual harassment. Instead, today Time’s Up is a ghost organization, technically still operating, but with no CEO or programming offered […]
- By
Inside the Documentary Cash Grab
At first, director Alex Gibney wholeheartedly embraced the influx of energy — and money — the streamers have increasingly pumped into the documentary space over the past decade. Selling to the growing platforms eager to bulk up their content libraries struck the Oscar-winning director of Taxi to the Dark Side and Going Clear: Scientology and […]
- By
Is Eric Weinberg Hollywood’s Most Prolific Predator?
Editor’s note: This story contains detailed descriptions of alleged sexual assaults. In February 2019, Gil Ramirez put out a query on Twitter on behalf of his friend, Avian Anderson. “Hey folks in the LA region: I have a friend that has been asked by a Eric Weinberg to take photos of her,” he tweeted. “Can […]
- By
Inside the Final Days of ‘The Wendy Williams Show’
On the morning of Sept. 30, 2021, two television executives made their way to Wendy Williams’ apartment in downtown Manhattan. As the longtime producers of The Wendy Williams Show, Debmar-Mercury co-presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein were trying to assuage the fears of the talk show’s 100-person staff, who they knew were reading about Williams’ […]
- By
What Really Happened With Fred Savage on ‘The Wonder Years’
It was as Fred Savage was preparing to direct his ninth episode of ABC’s reboot of The Wonder Years that a group of six women on the crew united to take action. Despite their fears about possible repercussions, in February they sent a complaint to Disney and subsequently spoke to an HR executive regarding their […]
- By
Hollywood’s Chief Diversity Officers Tell All
This is the first in an ongoing series on the status of progress with inclusion in Hollywood. *** Latasha Gillespie remembers having a doctor’s appointment on May 30, 2020. It was five days after George Floyd was suffocated by a police officer, his excruciating nine-minute, 29-second death — captured on video and witnessed by millions […]
- By