Warner Brothers has parted ways from film producer Brett Ratner, after six women came forward to accuse him of varying levels of sexual misconduct.
A source “close to the situation” confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that Warner Bros had “severed ties” with Ratner, making the decision not to renew his expired first-look deal and dropping him as a producer on the upcoming film adaptation of ‘The Goldfinch’.
Ratner said in a statement: “In light of the allegations being made, I am choosing to personally step away from all Warner Bros.-related activities.
“I don’t want to have any possible negative impact to the studio until these personal issues are resolved.”
A total of six women, including actresses Olivia Munn and Natasha Henstridge, told the L.A. Times earlier this week of their experiences of Ratner, all of which his lawyer has vehemently denied.
In the L.A. Times’ piece, Natasha Henstridge described falling asleep at the director’s house early on in her career in the 1990s, only to wake up and find her friends had left, after which she claimed he forced her to perform oral sex on him.
Olivia Munn also alleged that while paying a visit to the set of his 2004 film ‘After The Sunset’, Ratner masturbated in front of her in his trailer.
By way of response, Ratner’s attorney Martin Singer penned a 10-page letter to the L.A. Times, during which he insisted: “I have represented Mr. Ratner for two decades, and no woman has ever made a claim against him for sexual misconduct or sexual harassment.