TV host and Nerdist founder Chris Hardwick will no longer moderate panels for AMC and BBC America at Comic-Con International amid allegations that he sexually assaulted and abused his ex-girlfriend, Chloe Dykstra.
Hardwick chose to opt-out of hosting the panels at the annual San Diego comic convention, according to a statement released by AMC on Saturday. The TV network also stated that the second season of Talking With Chris Hardwick, a weekly talk show in which Hardwick would interview celebrity guests, would not be airing on AMC.
“We have had a positive working relationship with Chris Hardwick for many years,” the statement reads. “We take the troubling allegations that surfaced yesterday very seriously. While we assess the situation, Talking with Chris Hardwick will not air on AMC, and Chris has decided to step aside from moderating planned AMC and BBC America panels at Comic-Con International in San Diego next month.”
In a statement issued to The Hollywood Reporter on Saturday, NBC explained that it would be assessing its relationship with Hardwick, who hosts the game show The Wall.
“These allegations about Chris Hardwick took us by surprise as we have had a positive working relationship with him. However, we take allegations of misconduct very seriously,” NBC wrote in the statement. “Production on The Wall does not begin until September, and in the meantime we are continuing to assess the situation and will take appropriate action based on the outcome.”
The announcements come after Legendary Entertainment, which owns Nerdist, stated in a tweet on Friday that all references to Hardwick had been erased from the Nerdist website, although Hardwick had no involvement in the site since his contract ended in December 2017.
Dykstra, a TV personality who dated Hardwick between late 2011 and July 2014, published an essay on Medium on Thursday that detailed a relationship full of emotional and sexual abuse. Although Hardwick was not named in the piece, Dykstra made described her abuser as a “mildly successful podcaster” who eventually became “a powerhouse CEO of his own company.”
Hardwick has denied the sexual assault allegations. “At no time did I sexually assault her,” he said in a statement to Deadline.