Following a report that comedian Louis C.K. had behaved improperly with a number of women, FX Networks, which has produced five shows with him, said it had received no allegations against him in the eight years they have worked together.
In a story posted online Thursday (Nov. 9) by The New York Times, five women accused Louis C.K. of sexual misconduct. Before the story was published, a premiere of his movie I Love You, Daddy was canceled and an appearance on CBS's The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on was postponed.
Afterward, HBO pulled Luckie Louie, a series Louis C.K. starred in, and his comedy specials from its video on demand service. He was also dropped from a live special, Night of Too Many Stars: America Unites for Autism, set to air Nov. 18
The accusations come at a time when charges of sexual harassment in the entertainment business are being levied at top executives, agents and actors. The wave began with accusations against producer Harvey Weinstein and has led to the departure of Amazon Studios chief Roy Price and the firing of Kevin Spacey from Netflix’s House of Cards.
Related: Weinstein TV Production Business Shaken Amid Harassment Scandal
FX, which airs Louis C.K.’s series Louie, issued a statement after the NYT story broke. It said: “We are obviously very troubled by the allegations about Louis C.K. published in The New York Times today. The network has received no allegations of misconduct by Louis C.K. related to any of our five shows produced together over the past eight years. FX Networks and FXP take all necessary actions to protect our employees and thoroughly investigate any allegations of misconduct within our workplace. That said, the matter is currently under review.”
There were no signs that FX had severed ties with Louis C.K., and the network would not comment beyond the statement.
Louis C.K. and his spokeman have declined to comment.
FX is part of 21st Century Fox, which also owns Fox News Channel.
Fox News chair Roger Ailes was removed from his post last year after allegations of sexual harassment. The company also took top-rated host Bill O’Reilly off the air after reports that he paid several women to settle harassment charges.
Related: James Murdoch Says Fox Sent Strong Signal With Ailes, O'Reilly Dismissals
21st Century Fox is reportedly under investigation for not properly reporting those payments to women.
