Warner Bros. Television sacked the creator of CBS’s “All Rise” program, Greg Spottiswood, after a second investigation into allegations about how he dealt with the show’s writers, including conversations involving racial issues.
“Warner Bros. Television has dismissed ‘All Rise’ executive producer Greg Spottiswood from his duties, with immediate effect, ”the studio said Wednesday night in a statement. “We remain committed, at all times, to providing a safe and inclusive work environment in our productions and for all employees.”
Spottiswood had previously been investigated for his treatment of the screenwriters team during the first season of the CBS procedure, which debuted in September 2019 and starred by a black actress, Simone Missick, as the show’s protagonist, an idealistic Los Angeles judge. The studio kept Spottiswood, who is white, in charge of the show, and provided him with a corporate coach to advise him. He also hired a new co-showrunner, Dee Harris-Lawrence, after his original co-showrunner, Sunil Nayar, left production.
Five of the original seven members of the “All Rise” screenwriting team left the show because of the treatment he gave them and the way the show, under his direction, portrayed race and gender, reported The New York Times in August . Among those who left were the three highest-ranking black writers in the series, including Shernold Edwards, a black woman who left in November 2019 after several disagreements with Spottiswood.
“We had to do a lot behind the scenes to prevent these scripts from being racist and offensive,” Edwards told The Times.
At the time, Spottiswood said he was aware of the problems with his leadership and promised to do better.
“All Rise” was celebrated by CBS after its prime time programming was criticized for its lack of diversity. It was applauded both for its inclusive cast and its equally diverse writers room. Still, the original season’s writing staff said the problems were apparent from the start.
Mr. Nayar, for example, complained of being marginalized by Mr. Spottiswood, claiming that he was only interested in Nayar appearing at public events with the title of executive producer, but did not give him the roles to match that position.
“It was clear to me, when I left the program, that I was only there because I am the dark guy,” said Nayar in an interview at the time. “Greg hired me to be your dark guy.”
The most recent investigation was again focused on statements that Spottiswood would have made in the newsroom. After the studio’s investigation, Spottiswood was also dismissed as a client by his talent representatives at the Agency for the Performing Arts. The agency has represented him since 2015.
A Spottiswood lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.
Ms. Harris-Lawrence will assume Mr. Spottiswood’s responsibilities for the remainder of the season. The show is in production on its 15th episode of the 17-episode season. Production is scheduled to end next month.