Rocksteady Studios Releases New Statement on Misconduct Allegations

Rocksteady Studios issued another statement on Friday addressing the recent accusations of sexist and inappropriate conduct in the workplace and a failure to take action against such behavior. In its response, the creators of the new Suicide Rocksteady said actions have been taken to be more inclusive and a third-party organization has been enlisted to speak further with Rocksteady’s employees. These accusations and the responses came about in the time leading up to the studio’s big reveal of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, the studio’s next project that is to be revealed at DC FanDome.

The Guardian published a report this week detailing instances of sexual harassment, inappropriate conduct, and dismissive behavior towards women while referencing a 2018 letter sent to Rocksteady bosses meant to address the issues. Rocksteady released something of a statement afterwards that included a new letter from some of its employees. Some signatories from the first incriminating letter penned the latest one that said the sources used in The Guardian’s article didn’t provide a fair representation of the parties involved.

The statement from its employees was never meant to be Rocksteady’s full response though. That statement came on Friday, the eve before Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s reveal.

“In response to the initial communication, we met with all our female staff, we listened, and we dealt with the issues raised,” Rocksteady said regarding the first letter from 2018. “All formal complaints were thoroughly investigated, addressed appropriately and a number of serious measures were taken in response to the issues that were surfaced, including discipline or termination of staff.

“Since then, we have introduced new ways of ensuring we are making good on our commitment to inclusions, such as asking all female staff to provide feedback about the portrayal and behaviour of characters in the games we make. We are dedicated to listening and improving, and have employed specialists to help further enhance equity and representation at Rocksteady.”

Rocksteady closed out its statement by saying the studio has “engaged the services of an independent third-party to work with the company’s employees if the staff wishes to partake. It added that it’s inviting every former female employee who may have left in the past two years to speak to this third-party organization to provide more information.