Stranger Things’ Duffer Brothers Respond to Claims of Verbal Abuse
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The Duffer brothers (Matt and Ross), creators of Stranger Things, have been accused of verbal abuse by one of their former female colleagues.
The writer-directors, who hit it big with their Netflix smash hit, were taken to task on social media by Peyton Brown, a former grip from the series. Brown claims she could no longer work under the brothers due to their unfair treatment of women.
The ex-staffer wrote on Instagram:
“I guess there’s no better day than #nationalwomensday to say #timesup and announce that I will not be a part of the filming of Season 3 of Stranger Things. Why, you ask? Because I stand with my sisters. I personally witnessed two men in high positions of power on that set seek out and verbally abuse multiple women. I promised myself that if I were ever in a situation to say something that I would. I have 11.5 thousand followers who can hear me say this, TIME IS UP. Women in the film industry are POWERFUL.
We will rise and we will scream from mountain tops in support of each other and I will not contribute my time, efforts, and talent to such abusive people. There is too much going on in this world to be regressive. There are too many amazing and highly respected men in respective positions of power that I have had the utmost pleasure of working beside. Those are the people I want to surround myself with. Those are the projects I want to be a part of. This industry is no longer led by a ‘few good men,’ but instead by an OCEAN of ASTOUNDING WOMEN. Enough is enough. For my sisters- Time is up.”
Though Brown never actually calls them out by name, the Duffers weren’t about to let these unflattering remarks go without a response. In a statement to E! News, the Duffer brothers said, “We are deeply upset to learn that someone felt uncomfortable on our set. Due to the high-stress nature of production, tempers occasionally get frayed, and for that, we apologize.”
They then continued, “However, we think it is important not to mischaracterize our set, where we believe strongly in treating everyone fairly regardless of gender, orientation, race, religion, or anything else. We remain totally committed to providing a safe and collaborative working environment for everyone on our productions.”
As production is sure to be underway soon for Season 3 of Stranger Things, so a Netflix rep also addressed the complaint: “We looked into the concern that was raised when we heard of the allegation on Thursday, and found no wrongdoing. Maintaining a safe, respectful atmosphere on set is important to us, and we know it is to the Duffer Brothers as well.”
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