Fred Savage, the child star of “The Wonder Years,” is facing allegations of misconduct from several women who have spoken out about their experiences with the actor.
Six women on the crew of ABC’s reboot of “The Wonder Years” filed formal complaints to Disney and have subsequently spoken to a Human Resources executive citing allegations of misconduct against Savage.
“When he pulled me aside multiple times when he was verbally harassing me, his eyes would go dead,” one woman alleged of her encounters with Savage. “He flips a switch and he’s Fred Savage,” she revealed, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
One of the female complainants, who claimed to share a friendship with Savage, detailed the night that their dynamic allegedly changed. After reportedly spending time with Savage, who is also a director, and others at a bar called 97 Estoria, she went to the women’s washroom, where she says Savage suddenly appeared.
“I started laughing, like, ‘What are you doing? This is a women’s bathroom,” the unnamed woman reportedly told The Hollywood Reporter.
Fred Savage denies ‘devastating’ new abuse claims after ‘Wonder Years’ firing https://t.co/8yfx9eyWd7 pic.twitter.com/yfWSmQzPmZ
— New York Post (@nypost) August 9, 2022
She claims Savage then came after her with “just like, dead eyes” before pushing her against a wall.
“I said, ‘Please, don’t do this.’ I meant ruining the friendship. I was pleading, not from fear so much, but this was no going back,” the woman said to The Hollywood Reporter.
“He put his mouth on mine very forcefully. He went for the top of my pants. I brushed him away. Then he put his mouth on mine again, grabbed my hand and pulled it on his groin area. I was pulling back. He stopped very angrily. I shoulder-checked him so I could get out,” the woman said during her interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
Another woman described Savage’s behavior as “manipulative and erratic,” then went on to say he was “scary.” A young woman closely connected to Savage said the actor was “extremely controlling of her daily behaviors,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. (RELATED: REPORT: Boxing Legend Claims He’s Being Extorted Through False Sexual Assault Allegations)
It was as Fred Savage was preparing to direct his ninth episode of ABC’s reboot of ‘The Wonder Years’ that a group of six women on the crew united to take action https://t.co/qeLTHY9z4F
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) August 10, 2022
The women maintained their anonymity for fear of backlash and potential damage to their careers. During their interview, they said that executives never saw Savage’s darker side.
“They all see his absolute perfect, best face,” whereas he was dramatically different when interacting with “below-the-line employees who don’t have power,” one woman told The Hollywood Reporter.
Savage released a statement saying, in part, “I will work to address and change any behavior that has negatively affected anyone, as nothing in this world is more important to me than being a supportive co-worker, friend, husband, father and person,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The complainants, however, aren’t convinced.
“These men in charge know what the public is looking for and they know what words to use,” one of the women said. “We all felt supported by Fred. We truly thought he supported women. He told us he supported women. But this kind of support isn’t real.”