It was recently revealed that Disney and Pixar animation’s chief creative officer, John Lasseter, was taking an extended leave of absence. Now everyone knows why.
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A new report from THR states that Lasseter is being accused of several years of sexual harassment towards employees of the company, as well as writer and Parks and Rec star Rashida Jones.
It’s being reported that Lasseter had a long-running pattern of unwanted sexual advances. One employee of the company says that Lasseter was known for “grabbing, kissing, making comments about physical attributes.” Other sources inside the company revealed that Lasseter is known to drink in excess at social events, though his behavior was not confined to those situations.
As far as his interaction with Rashida Jones, the report states that her exit from Toy Story 4 was due to Lasseter’s behavior.
Jones and her then writing partner Will McCormack were brought on to write the fourth film in the franchise that Lasseter began back in 1995. While the writing duo are still being credited for the film’s script, they departed the project, citing “creative differences” with the studio. Sources are suggesting that the departure actually stemmed from Lasseter making an unwanted advance toward Jones in the time they were working together.
Neither Jones nor McCormack responded to THR when asked for a comment.
