Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter has been fired from his position as executive producer on the spinoff series Mayans M.C., with Deadline reporting that the decision was made by Dana Walden of Disney Television Studios and John Landgraf of FX Networks following an investigation into a series of complaints from writers, producers and cast and crew members alleging a hostile work environment.
“Disney letting me go today was apparently based on data collected by HR and Business Affairs from writers, producers, cast and crew,” wrote Sutter in a letter shared by Deadline. “They claim the intel suggests that I created a climate of hostility, favoritism and enabled a set where no one felt safe or appreciated. I know that’s not true. I’m not saying it was all sunshine and roses, but I’m close with most of those guys and they love going to work. I’m also not sure how, having been on set… maybe three times all season, I was able to singularly create that much damage.”
“Who I have been hard on this season is the studio and network,” he continues. “I’ve felt the creative scrutiny of Disney from day one. Notes on scripts and cuts have been heavy handed. Demanding a level of dumbing-down story and inane PC restraints like I’ve never experienced before. I genuinely feared for the creative future of the storytelling. So I pushed back. Hard. No different than I have in the past. In fact, much tamer than I ever was on SOA. However, I was dealing with personnel who didn’t know me. And my level of… passion. Clearly I ruffled a few mouse ears.”
“What pisses me off, what hurts the most, is that John Landgraf and Dana Walden sat across from me and sited a summary of a slanted truth formulated by lawyers and clerks,” Sutter states. “They blamed my dismissal on the cast and crew. People I care about. People I respect. They had no first hand knowledge of anything they were saying. They’ve never been on set or spoken to any of my people. I’m not saying all of the intel was bullshit. But I know that’s not why I was fired. The truth is, the suits wanted me gone. I stepped on toes and bruised egos. And in this Disney regime, I’m dangerous to the wholesome brand. And clearly not worth the trouble. So 18 years of friendship, loyalty and producing quality television, was flushed down the drain. They threw me under the fucking bus.”
The firing brings to an end an 18-year relationship between FX and Sutter, who has worked with the network on The Shield, Sons of Anarchy, The Bastard Executioner and Mayans M.C., the latter of which he created with Elgin James, who will now be taking over the spinoff show moving forward.
Originally published October 18, 2019. Updated October 19, 2019.
