The Proposal only just debuted but already ABC has had to pull an episode.
Milwaukee native Erica Denae Meshke wrote a post on social media claiming that upcoming contestant Michael J. Friday had allegedly set up a sexual assault where she was the victim. ABC responded very quickly, pulling the June 25 episode of The Proposal in response.
Erica Denae Meshke posted on her Facebook timeline June 21, stating that a man in an upcoming episode of The Proposal “was directly responsible for my date rape”.
The man she accused was later determined to be Michael J. Friday, who was one of 10 men vying for the hand of a woman on the June 25 episode. Following the Facebook post, ABC announced that the episode had been canceled.
Details from Erica Denae Meshke
Meshke told two journalists from the Huffington Post that she had matched with Michael Friday on the dating app Tinder in November and had arranged to meet.
When she arrived at the location, though, two other men were allegedly there whom she said Friday claimed were his friends.
HuffPost talked to Erica Denae Meshke, who says other women have come forward with allegations against contestant Michael Friday since she went public. https://t.co/oguaUOMhHn
— HuffPost (@HuffPost) June 22, 2018
According to the HuffPost article, Friday reportedly left while Meshke was with the two other men. Meshke stated that she had a drink, which she later suspected had been spiked with an unknown substance. It was then that she stated that she was assaulted and threatened by one of the men.
Meshke did not file a police report but felt she needed to come forward after seeing an advertisement for The Proposal with her alleged attacker on it. She told the Huffington Post that she is now considering making a report to the police about the incident.
While Meshke has not heard from ABC or production company Warner Bros. regarding her accusations, she said she is aware that the network has pulled the June 25 episode with Michael Friday on it.
Can The Proposal recover?
On the series premiere of The Proposal, bachelor Mike Crowe proposed to Monica to close out the episode. She said yes. It was later revealed that Mike and Monica are still together and “madly in love”.
The success of the relationship between Mike and Monica could go a long way toward promoting the show for the rest of its inaugural season.
With the quick action by ABC to pull the episode with Michael Friday on it, the network may also remain in the good graces of viewers. The ultimate measurement will be when the next episode airs and whether or not viewers tune in.
The Proposal airs Monday nights on ABC at 10/9c.