Rita Wilson Claims Scott Rudin Was 'Trying to Find a Way to Fire Me' After Her Breast Cancer Diagnosis
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Rita Wilson is coming forward with her own experience of working with Scott Rudin.
Back in 2015, Wilson, 64, was working with Rudin, 62, on the Broadway play Fish in the Dark, when she learned that she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Now, in a story published on Saturday by The New York Times, Wilson — alongside an array of others who worked closely with Rudin — recalled the reaction she received from the embattled producer after she told him the news about her cancer diagnosis.
Wilson told the Times that after Rudin learned about her diagnosis, "he complained that she would need time off during Tony voting season and asked to see her medical records, while Anna Shapiro, the director, grew upset about having to find a replacement."
"A few days later, just before the curtains rose, Ms. Wilson received a call from her agent, saying her surgeon needed to call the insurance adjuster immediately, per Mr. Rudin's demands," the publication continued to recount on Wilson's behalf. "The memory still pains her."
Wilson claimed Rudin's actions were meant to scare and bully her. "I felt like he was trying to find a way to fire me legally," the actress told the Times. "He is the kind of person who makes someone feel worthless, unvaluable and replaceable."
Rick Miramontez, a spokesman for Rudin, told the publication that "his recollection was that Ms. Wilson had wanted to open the show and then leave, but that he and the director had not wanted her to delay treatment."
Miramontez did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
Meanwhile, Shapiro told the Times she "had been trying to be helpful and had immediately apologized when it became clear that she had unintentionally upset Ms. Wilson."
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Earlier this week, after stepping back from his Broadway productions, Rudin announced that he would also be stepping back from his film projects amid the allegations of abusive behavior.
"I am stepping back from my film and streaming projects in addition to my work on Broadway," Rudin said in a statement on Tuesday obtained by Deadline. "I am doing so to take the time to work on personal issues I should have long ago. When I commented over the weekend, I was focused on Broadway reopening successfully and not wanting my previous behavior to detract from everyone's efforts to return. It's clear to me I should take the same path in film and streaming."
Rudin added, "I am profoundly sorry for the pain my behavior has caused and I take this step with a commitment to grow and change."
