“My passionate hope and expectation is that Broadway will soon reopen successfully, and that the many talented artists associated with it will begin to flourish again and share their artistry with the world,” he said in the statement. “I do not want any controversy with me to interrupt the well-deserved return of Broadway, or specifically the return of the 1,500 people working on these shows.”
Actors’ Equity, a trade union representing more than 51,000 actors and stage managers, has issued a statement welcoming Rudin’s announcement.
“Since news reports about Scott Rudin appeared, we’ve had a lot of private conversations with our brother and sister unions and the Broadway League,” read the statement from union president Kate Shindle and executive director Mary McColl. “We have heard from hundreds of members that these allegations are inexcusable, and that everyone deserves a safe workplace, whether they are a union member or not.”
The union, along with SAG-AFTRA and the American Federation of Musicians Local 802, issued a statement on Monday stating that “no worker may be subjected to bullying or harassment”, but Rudin is not mentioned by name.
Rudin, 62, has been a dominant figure in the American entertainment industry for many years. He is one of the handful of people known as EGOTs based on the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Awards. industries.
Although he has worked as a studio executive in Hollywood for some time, there have been many of his projects at the highest level over the past few years.
But he has been plagued for decades by reports that he threatens people working in his office, verbally abusing and throwing objects. And in industries with a long history of poor behavior by people who produce good art, he largely continued to flourish.