Disney’s top animator takes 6-month leave
LOS ANGELES: Disney animation chief John Lasseter said Tuesday he is taking a six-month leave of absence after acknowledging in a memo that he had made staff feel “disrespected or uncomfortable” with unwanted hugs.
The 60-year-old executive, best known for transforming Pixar from a small graphics department at Lucasfilm into the most successful animation studio in the world, was the pioneering director of Toy Story and Toy Story 2.
Entertainment trade paper The Hollywood Reporter, citing multiple unnamed sources, described a “pattern of alleged misconduct detailed by Disney/Pixar insiders” by Lasseter, some of which had involved actress Rashida Jones.
The report said Lasseter had made “unwanted advances” on Jones, who is best known for the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation and is credited as a writer on the upcoming Toy Story 4. His behaviour caused the star to leave the project early, although a source said the departure was over “creative differences”.
Multiple sources were quoted in the report alleging that Lasseter was a heavy drinker at company events, and that some women at Pixar knew to turn their heads quickly when encountering him to avoid his kisses.
Another move, “the Lasseter”, was used to prevent their boss from placing his hands on their thighs, the report said.
Lasseter has an exuberant public image. At events for Disney fans, he often bounds onto the stage wearing a Hawaiian shirt and uses a cannon to fire T-shirts into the cheering crowd.
He owns a winery in Sonoma County with his wife, Nancy, with whom he has five children. Agencies