Amazon suspends Studios chief amid sex harassment allegation
A producer says Roy Price repeatedly made unwanted sexual advances toward her at Comic-Con.
Amazon Studios chief Roy Price, seen with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (left) at Amazon's Emmy Celebration in 2016, has been suspended amid a sexual harassment allegation.
Amazon has suspended Roy Price, the head of its movie and TV show division, amid allegations he made unwanted sexual advances toward a female producer.
Price, the head of Amazon Studios, was accused of lewdly propositioning Isa Dick Hackett, a producer on "The Man in the High Castle," according to an interview published Thursday by The Hollywood Reporter. Hackett, daughter of the late science fiction writer and "High Castle" author Philip K. Dick, said in the interview that Price repeatedly made unwanted sexual advances toward her after a dinner two years ago during Comic-Con in San Diego. Price declined The Hollywood Reporter's request for comment.
"Roy Price is on a leave of absence effective immediately," an Amazon spokesman said in a statement after the interview's publication, adding that "we are reviewing our options for the projects we have with The Weinstein Co."
The suspension came a week after an Oct. 5 New York Times story first brought to light sexual harassment allegations against Hollywood movie producer Harvey Weinstein. Weinstein denies all allegations of nonconsensual sex but has said he's getting counseling.
Earlier Thursday, actress Rose McGowan reported that her Twitter account had been suspended after she spent a few days tweeting about the allegations against Weinstein, whom she has accused of raping her. After her account came back online Thursday, she sent five tweets directed at Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos , including one in which she said she'd told the "head of your studio" about the incident.
"@jeffbezos I told the head of your studio that HW raped me. Over & over I said it. He said it hadn't been proven. I said I was the proof," McGowan wrote in a tweet.
1) @jeffbezos I told the head of your studio that HW raped me. Over & over I said it. He said it hadn’t been proven. I said I was the proof.
— rose mcgowan (@rosemcgowan) October 12, 2017
Twitter tweeted about the suspension, explaining that McGowan's account had been temporarily locked because one of her tweets included a private phone number, which violated the company's terms of service.
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