‘House of Cards’ just the latest in string of shows rocked by scandals
The “House of Cards” has fallen and, despite Netflix’s insistence, the timing is suspect at best.
The political drama will end after the sixth season, the streaming service announced Monday, less than 24 hours after Anthony Rapp accused star Kevin Spacey of making a sexual advance when he was 14 years old. The series has since halted production.
If Netflix’s decision to axe the long-running program did stem from the explosive allegations against Spacey, “House of Cards” would not be the first show to see major changes after a scandal.
“GREY’S ANATOMY”
Dr. Burke left Seattle Grace in 2007 after Isaiah Washington called then-costar T.R. Knight (George O’Malley) a gay slur
during an on-set fight.
“I lost everything. I couldn’t afford to have an agent … I couldn’t afford to have a publicist … I couldn’t afford to continue,”
Washington said in 2013.
He returned to “Grey’s Anatomy” in 2014 to help say goodbye
to Sandra Oh’s Cristina Yang.
“TWO AND A HALF MEN”
The CBS sitcom was put on hiatus in February 2010 after star Charlie Sheen announced he was entering drug rehab, then again in January 2011.
A month later, the eighth season was shut down shortly after Sheen blasted creator Chuck Lorre, calling him a “stupid, stupid little man” and a “punk.” By March, CBS and Warner Bros. announced that Sheen had been fired from “Two and a Half Men,” citing “moral turpitude.”
Sheen’s character was killed off-screen in the series finale when a piano fell on him.
“HERE COMES HONEY BOO BOO”
Honey Boo Boo said goodbye in October 2014 when TLC axed the reality show after allegations that June Shannon was dating a convicted child molester.
“Supporting the health and welfare of these remarkable children is our only priority,” the network said. “TLC is faithfully committed to the children’s ongoing comfort and well-being.”
“DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES”
Nicollette Sheridan was written off of Wisteria Lane in 2009, four months after she claims show creator Marc Cherry slapped her after she questioned him about the script.
Sheridan filed a $20 million lawsuit in 2010, alleging assault and battery, gender violence and wrongful dismissal, but the suit resulted in a hung jury in 2012 and was then tossed out by a judge five years later.
“CRIMINAL MINDS”
In August 2016, Thomas Gibson was fired from the CBS show after kicking a writer on set.
Gibson, who had starred on the criminal procedural for 11 seasons, faced an initial two-episode suspension that was eventually turned into a permanent decision.
The actor had previously been forced to take anger management classes after pushing a show producer several years earlier, although he did not face a suspension for that incident.
“ESCAPING THE KKK”
A controversial docuseries about the Ku Klux Klan was canceled by A&E in December 2016, but the network claimed it had nothing to do with the backlash.
The show, which was following families in the South as some tried to leave the racist, anti-Semitic group, was instead pulled because producers had paid the subjects for their participation.
“19 KIDS AND COUNTING”
Two months after Josh Duggar was accused of molesting five underage girls, including four siblings, when he was a teenager, TLC canceled the reality show about the oversized family in July 2015.
The Duggars spun the story and said they were using the “painful situation” to help people move “toward faith in God.”
“SCANDAL”
In April 2014, Columbus Short’s wife filed for divorce and was granted a temporary restraining order against the actor after accusing him of threatening to kill her while he was drunk.
Not long after, showrunner Shonda Rhimes announced that Short would not be returning to “Scandal” for the next season.
He later admitted that the cast knew about his cocaine abuse and struggle to stay clean.
“I had a lot on my plate, and you know, I was using unhealthy ways to kind of self-medicate and deal with a lot of heavy duty stuff in my life,” he said that December.
“That was one of the real reasons — they just wanted me to get my stuff together.”
PAULA DEEN
In the wake of revelations that Paula Deen had used the N-word several times in the past, the Food Network declined to renew her contract after 11 years, ending several shows.
The celebrity chef was sued by a former manager of Uncle Bubba’s Seafood and Oyster House who accused Deen and her brother of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment.
“I want people to understand that my family and I are not the kind of people that the press say that we are. I’ve spent the best of 24 years to help myself and others. Your color of skin, your religion, your sexual preference does not matter to me,” Deen said in a video apology.
“I am here to say that I am so sorry. I was wrong, yes. I’ve worked hard and I’ve made some mistakes. But that is no excuse.”
“POLITICALLY INCORRECT”
Bill Maher’s talk show was canceled in June 2002, just months after controversial comments about then-President George W. Bush about the Sept. 11. attacks.
“We have been the cowards, lobbing cruise missiles from 2,000 miles away,” Maher said on his show six days after the attacks.
“That’s cowardly. Staying in the airplane when it hits the building, say what you want about it, it’s not cowardly.”
ABC denied that Maher’s comments, which were condemned by White house press secretary Ari Fleischer, led to the cancellation, instead blaming low ratings.