Patricia Heaton‘s husband, producer David Hunt, has been accused of inappropriate touching on the set of Carol’s Second Act.
According to The New York Times, writer Broti Gupta went to human resources to complain about Hunt touching her on two separate occasions. She said she felt uncomfortable after Hunt hugged her outside a work dinner in August, before “he complimented her pants and ran a hand up the side of her thigh.” Another time, she says, Hunt jerked her by the shoulders after apparently looking for something.
After being encouraged by co-executive producer Margee Magee to speak out, Gupta reported the incidents.
Gupta tells the Times that after complaining she and Magee were stopped from attending some of the show’s rehearsals. Both women then quit the show.
CBS told Fox News on Sunday, “The matter was promptly investigated by human resources, and appropriate action was taken to address the complaint. The executive producer cooperated fully with the process.”
The network also said it “looked into allegations of retaliatory conduct by the showrunners at the time they were raised, and we found no evidence of retaliatory intent in their interactions with the writer or the producer.”
A lawyer for Hunt tells The New York Times his client “did not remember the details as described” and “does not recall rubbing anyone’s thigh or leg and he disputes that characterization of it.” The lawyer said Hunt “remembers looking for a script but does not remember the detail of touching anyone’s shoulders, and if he did that, it was not intended to be offensive.”
