Posted in: Netflix, streaming, TV | Tagged: frank langella, house of usher, Mike Flanagan, netflix

House of Usher: Frank Langella Blames "Cancel Culture" for Firing

Less than a week after we learned Bruce Greenwood (The Resident) had joined the cast in the role of Roderick Usher, ousted actor Frank Langella went public to push back on sexual harassment accusations and claims that he made inappropriate comments to a female co-star on set during the filming of Mike Flanagan & Trevor Macy's The Fall of the House of Usher. Last month, Deadline Hollywood & TMZ confirmed Langella had been the subject of an investigation, which determined that Langella "had been involved in unacceptable conduct on set" and that Langella's role as Roderick Usher would be recast.

Claiming that he has been "canceled" and "not given a hearing with Netflix," Langella wrote a guest column for Deadline Hollywood (which you can read here) as a way of answering the reports and allegations that have been leveled against him. As for how far into filming House of Usher was, Langella claims that there were "only three weeks left to shoot" when he was fired. Here are some of the excerpts that stood out:

Langella on His Initial Reaction to Being Fired: "On April 14 of this year, I was fired by Netflix for what they determined to be unacceptable behavior on set. My first instinct was to blame. To lash out and seek vengeance. I interviewed crisis managers, tough connected lawyers, the professionally sympathetic at $800 per hour. Free advice was proffered as well: "Don't play the victim." "Don't sue. They'll dig into your past." "Sign the NDA, take the money, and run." "Do the talk shows. Show contrition; feign humility. Say you've learned a lot." Apologize. Apologize. Apologize."

Langella Offers His Version of Events: "On March 25 of this year, I was performing a love scene with the actress playing my young wife. Both of us were fully clothed. I was sitting on a couch, she was standing in front of me. The director called cut. "He touched my leg," said the actress. "That was not in the blocking." She then turned and walked off the set, followed by the director and the intimacy coordinator. I attempted to follow, but was asked to "give her some space." I waited for approximately one hour, and was then told she was not returning to set and we were wrapped.

Langella Finds "Legislating the Placement of Hands… Absurd": Not long after, an investigation began. Approximately one week later, Human Resources asked to speak to me by phone. "Before the love scene began on March 25," said the questioner, "our intimacy coordinator suggested where you both should put your hands. It has been brought to our attention that you said, 'This is absurd!'" "Yes," I said, "I did. And I still think so." It was a love scene on camera. Legislating the placement of hands, to my mind, is ludicrous. It undermines instinct and spontaneity. Toward the end of our conversation, she suggested that I not contact the young lady, the intimacy coordinator, or anyone else in the company. "We don't want to risk retaliation," she said. When I mentioned that it was certainly not my intention to… she cut me off politely and said: "Intention is not our concern. Netflix deals only with impact."

Langella Sees His Actions as "Keeping the Atmosphere Light and Friendly": "When you are the leading actor, it requires, in my opinion, that you set an example by keeping the atmosphere light and friendly. Nevertheless, these were some of the allegations: 1. 'He told an off-color joke.' 2. 'Sometimes he called me baby or honey.' 3. 'He'd give me a hug or touch my shoulder.'"

Langella: "The Impact on Me Has Been Incalculable": "I cannot speak to the intentions of my accuser or Netflix, but the impact on me has been incalculable. I lost a thrilling part, the chance at future earnings, and perhaps face a stretch of unemployment. Netflix terminated me after three months of work with only three weeks left to shoot, and I have as yet to be fully remunerated for my services. Most importantly, my reputation has been tarnished."

As Langella Sees It, "Cancel Culture" Is To Blame: "Cancel culture is the antithesis of democracy. It inhibits conversation and debate. It limits our ability to listen, mediate, and exchange opposing views. Most tragically, it annihilates moral judgment."

Netflix's The Fall of the House of Usher stars Carla Gugino, Mary McDonnell, Bruce Greenwood, Carl Lumbly, Mark Hamill, Annabeth Gish, Henry Thomas, Samantha Sloyan, T'Nia Miller, Rahul Kohli, Kate Siegel, Sauriyan Sapkota, Zach Gilford, Katie Parker, Michael Trucco, Malcolm Goodwin, Crystal Balint, Kyleigh Curran, Paola Nunez, Aya Furukawa, Matt Biedel, Daniel Jun, Ruth Codd, and Robert Longstreet. Based on a number of Poe's works, the eight-episode series is created by Flanagan, who will direct and executive produce along with his Intrepid Pictures partner Trevor Macy as well as Emmy Grinwis and Michael Fimognari. Intrepid Pictures' Melinda Nishioka will co-executive produce the project. Michael Fimognari (To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You) is set to direct four episodes of the season.

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