Armie Hammer Docuseries to Remove Image of Alleged Bite Mark After Viewers Question Validity
“House of Hammer,” a new Discovery+ docuseries about the sexual abuse allegations against Armie Hammer, is making a change following its release, removing an image of an alleged bite mark that one of the actor’s exes believed to be a photo of her own body. Turns out, the image in question appears to be a bite mark tattoo from Pinterest.
In “House of Hammer,” Courtney Vucekovich — one of Hammer’s former partners, who has accused him of improper sexual behavior — discusses the love-bombing, coercion and abuse she alleges to have endured during her relationship with the actor. In an on-camera interview, she says the actor convinced her into BDSM situations that did not make her feel safe, including rope bondage and biting.
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“He bites really hard,” Vucekovich says in “House of Hammer.” As she gives details on the alleged biting, a photo is shown of a bite mark. In the doc, Vucekovich says she believes the photograph is of her body and was taken by Hammer.
“He tells you to wear them like a badge of honor,” she says of Hammer’s alleged bite marks. “Almost like he convinced me that I’m lucky to have it. As fucked up as it sounds, at that time, I was interpreting that as love. Looking at it now, makes me sick. He pushes your boundaries a little bit at a time.”
Shortly after the docuseries premiered, social media users on TikTok, Instagram and Twitter noticed that the image looked similar to that of a bite mark tattoo photo that originated on the internet and appears to have been found on Pinterest.
Now, Talos Films, which produced “House of Hammer,” is in the process of removing the image from the docuseries, Variety has confirmed.
In a statement, the production company reiterates their support of Vucekovich and Hammer’s other accusers.
“We take seriously the responsibility of representing victims’ stories. When new information came forward about this series we immediately began investigating it and will make any appropriate changes as quickly as possible,” a spokesperson affiliated with the docuseries says in a statement, obtained by Variety. “We are proud of those who came forward to share their truth to the public — including Courtney Vucekovich and Casey Hammer — and stand firmly behind the important message in this docuseries.”
Over the weekend, Vucekovich issued a statement to People, explaining that Hammer sent her the photo during their relationship and she believed the photograph was an image of her own body.
“When you are love-bombed, you receive multiple images in rapid succession. During my time with Armie, I received numerous messages including countless images and videos. The bite mark shown was a photo sent by Armie within our archived text thread and over a year later, I believed it to have been a photo of me given that I have dozens of photos depicting his abuse on my body,” Vucekovich told the publication. “I have chosen to tell my story to shed light on what I experienced within my relationship in hopes others are not put in the same situation.”
In “House of Hammer,” Vucekovich says that Hammer once left a letter in an envelope at her apartment building, which said “I am going to bite the fuck out of you” with his signature. An image of that photo (which has not been verified by Hammer) was also shown on-screen.
In an interview conducted last week before the docuseries dropped, the directors of “House of Hammer” told Variety that they were “rigorous in vetting” throughout their filmmaking process.
When asked about corroborating the accounts of Hammer’s accusers, Julian P. Hobbs, who co-directed with Elli Hakami, told Variety: “We always vet our films through multiple lawyers. No film we have done has been more vetted than this film because we had to get it right. It wasn’t just double sourcing; it was triple sourcing. It was like, ‘When in doubt, leave it out.’ There was rigorous research, archival and legal review every step of the way of all materials of the film. I’ll be honest, even up to two days ago, we were replacing a photograph because we weren’t 100% sure that it was being ascribed to the right person and right place, and that we had clearance to use it.”
Hammer has not responded to any allegations made in “House of Hammer,” and an attorney for the actor did not respond to Variety’s request for comment when the docuseries premiered last week. The actor, however, has previously and continuously denied all allegations. Hammer’s attorney has stated that every sexual encounter has been “consensual, discussed and agreed upon in advance, and mutually participatory.”
Hammer was hit with allegations of sexual abuse in early 2021, after a flurry of “cannibalism” headlines dominated the tabloid media. He was then dropped by his agency, WME, and a series of high-profile projects, essentially being ousted from Hollywood. A source close to the actor previously told Variety that Hammer spent time at a treatment facility in recovery after the public scandal. He currently has no projects lined up, and is the subject of an ongoing LAPD investigation, stemming from a rape allegation that he categorically denies from one of his former partners, named Effie. In an interview last week, Effie — who is represented by attorney Gloria Allred, who appears in “House of Hammer” — spoke out against the docuseries saying, “The way they’ve been exploiting my trauma is disgusting… they remind me of Armie.”
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