After an unfiltered and ire-stoking cast sit-down with The New York Times, Netflix has canceled the U.K. leg of its Arrested Development publicity tour. In a lot of ways, this move is less surprising than the streamer’s decision to let most of the show’s ensemble sit down for that interview in the first place—which took place long after star Jeffrey Tambor left Transparent after being accused of sexual harassment, and a few weeks after the actor admitted to yelling at his Arrested co-star Jessica Walter on set.
During the roundtable, Walter detailed her feelings about the “blowup” Tambor had brought up during a recent interview, saying, through tears, it was the worst treatment she’d experienced in her 60-year career. Most of her male co-stars present diminished the episode and defended Tambor. Jason Bateman, Tony Hale, and David Cross have all apologized for their behavior during the interview, but it appears Netflix still believes it’s best to get the show out of the limelight.
Arrested Development returns to Netflix with a fifth season this month—and unlike Amazon, which pulled Tambor from contention following his dismissal from Transparent, Netflix submitted the actor for Emmys along with the rest of the cast. A former assistant and a co-star of Tambor’s on Transparent have both accused the actor of sexual harassment—and although the actor admits to having had outbursts on set, he vehemently denies any allegations of sexual misconduct.
When Tambor first mentioned his outburst at Walter in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Walter declined to comment. During the Times sit-down, however, she said, “In like almost 60 years of working, I’ve never had anybody yell at me like that on a set.”
Bateman, Hale, and Cross, all of whom seemed to downplay the significance of Tambor’s outburst to The New York Times, despite protestations from both Walter and their co-star Alia Shawkat, have now issued apologies for their comments.
In a series of tweets, Bateman wrote, “Based on listening to the NYT interview and hearing people’s thoughts online, I realize that I was wrong here. I sound like I’m condoning yelling at work. I do not. It sounds like I’m excusing Jeffery [sic]. I do not. It sounds like I’m insensitive to Jessica. I am not.”
“I’m incredibly embarrassed and deeply sorry to have done that to Jessica,” Bateman added. “This is a big learning moment for me. I shouldn’t have tried so hard to mansplain, or fix a fight, or make everything okay. I should’ve focused more on what the most important part of it all is—there’s never any excuse for abuse, in any form, from any gender. And, the victim’s voice needs to be heard and respected. Period. I didn’t say that and instead said a bunch of other stuff and not very well. I deeply, and sincerely, apologize.”
Hours later, Hale issued his own apology: “I have reached out to Jessica personally to apologize. Arrested Development is one of my families. Regardless of my intentions, it is clear that my words, both said and unsaid, served to minimize Jessica’s pain and for that I am extremely sorry.”
And then there was Cross, who admitted during an interview with Gothamist he suspects anything he says will make matters worse. Still, the actor said, “I’ll say this. Two people that I deeply respect, and I listen to and I love and appreciate, expressed to me after that interview their discomfort with it. One of those was Alia [Shawkat], and the other was my wife.” (Cross is married to Amber Tamblyn, who co-founded the Time’s Up organization.) “I listened to them, and I can’t and wouldn’t ever dismiss their take on something,” Cross continued. “And they are also two people who are aware of the bigger picture. So, it means even more than it normally would, which is a lot. So I will unequivocally apologize to Jessica. I’m sorry that we behaved the way we behaved. Whatever the criticisms are, I will own up.”
Given the publicity tour’s cancellation, it appears that the cast’s “owning up” will have to happen in private—and that might be for the best.
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