F. Murray Abraham has responded to a report that his exit from Apple TV+’s Mythic Quest was related to a sexual misconduct investigation.
In an emailed statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday, the Oscar-winning actor apologized for the conduct that led to his firing from the series but denied that his behavior involved anything more than “jokes.”
“This is a sincere and deeply felt apology,” The White Lotus star said. “Though never my intention to offend anyone, I told jokes, nothing more, that upset some of my colleagues and as a result lost a great job with wonderful people.”
“I have grown in my understanding from this experience, and I hope they will forgive me,” he added.
On Monday, Rolling Stone reported that the Emmy nominee and Homeland star’s departure ahead of Mythic Quest‘s third season was the result of complaints about Abraham’s behavior on set involving unnamed female co-stars. Abraham was allegedly given a warning and told to keep his distance from several actresses, but following an alleged second incident that series co-creator and star Rob McElhenney was made aware of, he was let go.
In a statement, Lionsgate Television told THR on Monday that they “take allegations of misconduct seriously and investigate them thoroughly.” The statement also noted that “as a matter of corporate policy, we do not discuss our personnel actions.”
Abraham appeared in the first two seasons of the Apple TV+ series about the fictional team behind the biggest multiplayer video game in history as author and video game writer C.W. Longbottom. The entirety of season three finished airing in January, but Abraham’s last onscreen appearance was in the show’s second season finale, which aired back in 2021.
The show, which debuted in February 2020, is co-created by McElhenney, Charlie Day and Megan Ganz.
Source: Hollywood
