Scott Rudin will ‘step back’ from film and streaming projects, promises to ‘grow and change’

The embattled producer said on Saturday that he would ‘step back’ from his Broadway ventures

Scott Rudin has said that he is “stepping back” from forthcoming film and streaming projects, along with his Broadway productions following renewed accusations of bullying.

In a statement Tuesday (20 April), the embattled film, television, and theater producer said he would use this time to “work on personal issues I should have long ago”.

“When I commented over the weekend, I was focused on Broadway reopening successfully and not wanting my previous behavior to detract from everyone’s efforts to return,” he said. “It’s clear to me I should take the same path in film and streaming. I am profoundly sorry for the pain my behavior has caused and I take this step with a commitment to grow and change.”

On Saturday (17 April), Rudin said his in-development Broadway projects would be taken over by others, including those already at work on those productions.

Rudin’s step back follows an exposé from The Hollywood Reporter that ran earlier in the month and detailed a number of instances of alleged harsh treatment of employees of his production company, including smashing a laptop screen on an assistant's hand and throwing objects such as glass bowls, staplers, and baked potatoes.

The 62-year-old producer has overseen some of the most acclaimed films and Broadway shows in entertainment, such as No Country for Old Men, The Social Network, The Truman Show, Fences, and The Grand Budapest Hotel.

While most of Rudin's collaborators have been quiet following the article, several labor unions have responded. The Actors’ Equity Association, which represents more than 51,000 professional actors and stage managers in live theater, asked Rudin to release former employees from nondisclosure agreements signed during their time working with him.

Upcoming film projects for Rudin include Netflix's adaptation of The Woman in the Window, A24's adaptation of the Tony-winning play The Humans, and Joel Coen's Shakespeare adaptation The Tragedy of Macbeth, with Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand.

Current Broadway shows produced by Rudin include The Book of Mormon, To Kill a Mockingbird, West Side Story, and the upcoming revival of The Music Man.

SAG-AFTRA the Actors’ Equity Association and the American Federation of Musicians Local 802 released a joint statement that didn't directly address Rudin but spoke out against toxic workplace environments.

“Every worker deserves to do their job in an environment free of harassment of any kind, whether that harassment creates a toxic workplace or, certainly in the case of sexual harassment, when that behavior is also against the law," the unions said.