The lawyer of a crew member for Fox sitcom The Grinder, who accused Fred Savage of abusive behavior, has claimed his firing from The Wonder Years reboot was “a long time coming.”
Savage, 45, was fired last week from his role as executive producer and director of The Wonder Years amid accusations of verbal outbursts and inappropriate behavior.
These latest allegations form a list of previous complaints about the former child actor. In 2018, a costumer called Youngjoo Hwang claimed Savage had violently struck her on the arm while on the set of ABC’s The Grinder. She further contended that Savage had a reputation for creating a hostile work environment for female crew workers.
Lawyer says they are not ‘surprised’ Fred Savage was fired
Now, Hwang’s attorney, Anahita Seda, said that they are “not the least bit surprised” that 20th Television has ditched Savage from their payroll. Speaking to Page Six, Seda also noted that it was “a long time coming” and had learned of multiple complaints against Savage when they began investigating.
They said: “When my client [Hwang] came to me in 2018 with her allegations against Mr. Savage, we discovered that there was at least one lawsuit that had been filed against him in the past” and that Savage had “engaged in this type of behavior not just towards my client but other women.”
Hwang came forward in 2018 to accuse Savage of hitting her three times on the arm after she had brushed dandruff off his suit. She alleged he told her: “Do not touch me with your hands!”
Fox said they launched an investigation into allegations against Savage but “found no evidence of any wrongdoing” and cleared him. Savage settled the case with Hwang in April 2019.
More recently, 20th Television initiated their investigation and, without releasing any further details, announced they would “terminate his employment” on The Wonder Years reboot.
Fred Savage has been accused of harassment before
According to US Weekly, in 1993, Savage and fellow actor Jason Hervey were both accused of physically harassing and verbally abusing another costumer, Monique Long, while on the set of the original series of The Wonder Years. That lawsuit was also dropped after an undisclosed settlement was reached.
Actress Alley Mills, who played Savage’s mom on the original series, defended her costar when the news of allegations emerged in 2018. She called Savage the “most wonderful, sweet human being that ever walked the face of the Earth” and said she thought the lawsuit was a “big joke.”
Savage isn’t the only celebrity facing accusations of ill behavior towards female colleagues, comedy legend Bill Murray has found himself in trouble after filming of his movie Being Mortal was suspended following an allegation of inappropriate behavior.