Amazon has reportedly suspended Roy Price, its point man in Hollywood and the head of its ambitious video program, according to ReCode.
According to HollywoodReporter, in the wake of revelations about Harvey Weinstein’s alleged years-long sexual harassment and assault, a producer of one of Amazon Studios’ highest-profile TV shows is ready to talk about her “shocking and surreal” experience with Amazon’s programming chief.
"You will love my dick," Price allegedly said to Isa Hackett, a producer on "The Man in the High Castle," who details a July 2015 incident at Comic-Con in San Diego.
On the evening of July 10, 2015, after a long day of promoting Man in the High Castle at Comic-Con in San Diego, Hackett attended a dinner with the show"s cast and Amazon staff at the U.S. Grant Hotel. There she says she met Price for the first time. He asked her to attend an Amazon staff party later that night at the W Hotel (now the Renaissance) and she ended up in a taxi with Price and Michael Paull, then another top Amazon executive and now CEO of the digital media company BAMTech.
Once in the cab, Hackett says Price repeatedly and insistently propositioned her. “You will love my dick,” he said, according to Hackett, who relayed her account to multiple individuals in the hours after the alleged episode. (The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed Hackett told at least two people about the alleged incident in the immediate aftermath.) Hackett says she made clear to Price she was not interested and told him that she is a lesbian with a wife and children.
Hackett says Price did not relent in the cab or once they arrived at the Amazon party. As she talked with other executives, she says that Price stepped close to her and loudly said, “Anal sex!” in her ear.
Hackett says she reported the incident to Amazon executives immediately. An outside investigator, Christine Farrell of Public Interest Investigations Inc., was brought in and spoke to Hackett and executives at Amazon. Hackett says she was never told the outcome of that inquiry, but notes that she hasn’t seen Price at any events involving her shows.
"We take seriously any questions about the conduct of our employees,” an Amazon spokesperson tells THR in a statement.
“We expect people to set high standards for themselves; we encourage people to raise any concerns and we make it a priority to investigate and address them. Accordingly, we looked closely at this specific concern and addressed it directly with those involved."
But, now, as ReCode reports, Price is gone with his suspension effective immediately, according to an internal Amazon memo.
“Roy Price is on leave of absence effective immediately,” an Amazon spokesperson told Variety Thursday.
“We are reviewing our options for our projects we have with the Weinstein Company.”
Albert Cheng, a former ABC executive who joined Amazon’s video group two years ago, will be the interim head of the unit.
Ironically, last week the Wall Street Journal published a critical account of Price’s track record in Hollywood, noting that the company had spent billions on programming but with a handful of exceptions, hadn’t won plaudits or large audiences.
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