The people behind a BBC miniseries called Ordeal By Innocence have announced that the actor Ed Westwick will be replaced by the actor Christian Cooke. This happened because Westwick is one of the figures in the entertainment industries that are being accused of sexual misconduct, which prompted the BBC to cancel the miniseries. Something that has since been changed to settling for removing Westwick from Ordeal By Innocence.
What Is Ed Westwick Being Accused Of?
Said chain of events started in November of 2017, which was when three separate women accused Westwick of sexual misconduct. Two of the women accused him of having raped them, while the third woman accused him of having sexually assaulted her. In response to the accusations of the first two women, Westwick stated that he was not a rapist. In contrast, he refused to respond to the accusations of the third woman whatsoever. Regardless, Westwick has responded to the announcement of the choice to remove him from Ordeal By Innocence as well, essentially repeating his statement that he was not a rapist while also stating that he was cooperating with the relevant authorities for the purpose of clearing his name.
As for the BBC, it has stated that it was not making a judgment regarding the accusations of sexual misconduct against Westwick one way or the other. Instead, it was putting Ordeal By Innocence on hold so that matters could be cleared up. Currently, it is unknown when the miniseries will be broadcast once the changes have been made, but it is clear that the original broadcast data is no longer possible, seeing as how that the miniseries was supposed to have been broadcast at around Christmas time. Besides Ordeal By Innocence, it is interesting to note that Season 2 of White Gold has been put on halt for much the same reason.
Further Considerations
Besides the basics, not too much is known about what is happening in regards to the accusations against Westwick. As a result, those who are interested in seeing the outcome will have to wait for further information to come out, which makes sense because it takes time for the relevant authorities to look into claims.
Regardless, the BBC’s choice to put a halt on Ordeal By Innocence was the sensible thing to do under the circumstances. Westwick has a point when he says that the claims are unproven at this point in time. However, the BBC’s choice showed that it was willing to treat the statements of the victims of sexual misconduct with the seriousness that they deserve, which is a welcome position considering the state of things in the not so distant past. Furthermore, it should be noted that the BBC’s choice is perfectly in line with the choices of other media companies, which have put an end to their involvement with various figures from the entertainment industries because of similar stories of sexual misconduct. For an example, look no further than how Netflix has cut ties with Kevin Spacey, Louis CK, and others. As a result, the BBC’s refusal to do the same would not have reflected well on it to say the least.
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