David Harbour has exited Behemoth!, the forthcoming drama from Tony Gilroy and Searchlight Pictures, to ‘rest’ following the Stranger Things finale.
A spokesperson for Searchlight confirmed to Variety that Harbour is no longer attached to the project, which is currently in development.
The actor had been set to appear opposite Pedro Pascal and Olivia Wilde.
The role has since been recast, insiders say, though details about Harbour’s replacement have not yet been made public.
Plot specifics remain unknown, but the logline describes Behemoth! as centering on ‘a musician from a family of musicians who returns to Los Angeles.’
According to multiple sources familiar with the production, Harbour’s decision to step away came in the aftermath of wrapping Stranger Things, whose rollout for the fifth and final season has been both extensive and intense.
It was also separately tumultuous lead-up to the series premiere for Harbour, as rumours circulated that his co-star, Millie Bobby Brown, 21, had accused him of ‘bullying and harassment’ on set, and he continued to face backlash for the revelations his ex-wife Lily Allen made about him on her hit album West End Girl.
It was claimed the complaint reportedly from his co-star was filed ‘before they started shooting the last season,’ while ‘the investigation went on for months.’
A report in Variety later claimed that there was an investigation into the bullying and harassment complaint against David and that it was resolved.
Co-creators and showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer were asked about the bullying claims on the red carpet at the premiere of the fifth season.
Ross told The Hollywood Reporter: ‘Obviously, you understand I can’t get into personal onset matters, but I will say we’ve been doing this for 10 years with this cast, and at this point they’re family and we deeply care about them.
‘So, you know, nothing matters more than just having a set where everyone feels safe and happy.’
This came after Allen – who married Harbour in 2020 – very publicly accused her ex-husband of cheating, gaslighting, lying, and contemplated whether he was a ‘sex addict’ after she found his ‘Pussy Palace’ New York apartment. She revealed all of this on her new album, in songs such as Madeline and Tennis.
In the album, Lily reflected that she agreed to let Harbour have an open relationship, singing that while ‘it had to be discreet and don’t be blatant / it had to be with strangers / there had to be payment,’ Harbour crossed a line with a woman called Madeline, who it turns out is a pseudonym for a real costume designer called Natalie Tippet.
The Not Fair hitmaker reflected how Harbour took her ‘for a fool’ and somehow ‘made it all [her] fault’, while he disregarded her feelings and carried on living a ‘double life’.
While Lily said the album is a blend of fact and fiction, the Netflix actor has remained tight-lipped on the bombshell claims.
Still, public scrutiny has not been kind to the actor amid all of the controversy, and many are now wondering if he’s choosing to pull away from the spotlight until it all blows over.
Metro has contacted David Harbour’s representatives for comment.
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