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Louis C.K.'s Upcoming Projects Are Crumbling

HBO, Netflix, FX, and production company the Orchard have weighed in on the fate of the comedian's stand-up specials and new film following sexual misconduct allegations.
Photo by Ben Gabbe/Getty Images for Tribeca TV Festival

Louis C.K.'s upcoming projects are crumbling in the wake of multiple sexual misconduct allegations against him, following a bombshell New York Times report.

Within hours of the revelations, HBO announced that it would be dropping C.K. from its November 18 autism benefit special, Night of Too Many Stars: America Unites for Autism Programs, according to the Times. HBO says it also plans to scrub C.K.'s "past projects from its On Demand services," including a string of stand-up specials and the short-lived sitcom Lucky Louie.

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Netflix also announced on Friday that it would no longer be producing the second of two stand-up specials the comedian agreed to film for the streaming giant, condemning his alleged "unprofessional and inappropriate behavior."

FX, the network that made C.K.'s groundbreaking series Louie and gave him free rein to produce and develop the series in an overall deal, is reportedly "very troubled" by the news and investigating.

"[FX] has received no allegations of misconduct by Louis C.K. related to any of our five shows produced together over the past eight years," the network said in a statement. "That said, the matter is currently under review."

On top of his TV projects, the premiere of C.K.'s self-financed, controversial film I Love You, Daddy—starring Chloë Grace Moretz as C.K.'s 17-year-old daughter who starts dating a 68-year-old filmmaker—was abruptly cancelled before the Times article dropped. On Friday, the distribution company officially announced it would be shelving the project, according to BuzzFeed News.

The Times report alleges that C.K. pressured multiple women to watch him masturbate in front of them and, in one instance, to listen to him masturbate over the phone. C.K. has repeatedly shrugged off sexual misconduct rumors for years, though he reportedly apologized for the phone incident in a private Facebook message in 2009, according to the Times report.

C.K.'s publicist, Lewis Kay, told Vanity Fair that the comedian is currently preparing a statement in response to the report.

Update 11/10: FX announced on Friday that it would be cancelling its overall deal with Louis C.K. following his admission of sexual misconduct. In a statement, the network said C.K. "will no longer serve as executive producer or receive compensation on any of the four shows we were producing with him—Better Things, Baskets, One Mississippi, and The Cops."