Stern said the experience left him ‘afraid of the industry.’
Daniel Stern is recalling the time he learned of sexual misconduct on a ’90s sitcom. In his new memoir, Home and Alone, the actor writes about how he was initially thrilled to sign on to star in Partners in 1999 with some high-caliber stars.
As a result of sexual harassment accusations and a multimillion-dollar lawsuit filed against the star of Home Alone, the show was canceled. “They offered me a boatload of money, made me an executive producer… they had a big-name director, Brett Ratner and we cast great actors, including Jeremy Piven,” he recalled in his book, per Page Six.
In Stern’s account, he alleged women on set began confiding in him shortly after they started filming the pilot, saying, “Brett and Jeremy were sexually harassing them, and they were afraid.” Despite telling the other executive producers about what he had heard, the Breaking Away star says he was allegedly instructed “to just keep quiet” since they “would handle it.”
After voicing his concerns, Stern was called into a meeting with Columbia TV executives allegedly annoyed with him. He said they believed the show had a good chance of being picked up and did not want any controversy to hamper its chances. While Stern was leaving, he claimed a producer pulled him aside and yelled, “Don’t you say a f—ing word to anyone, or we’ll sue you!”
According to Stern, he was specifically instructed not to divulge the information to the then-CEO of CBS, Les Moonves, who resigned in 2018 due to allegations of sexual harassment. Nevertheless, days before CBS revealed its lineup, a producer allegedly phoned Stern in a rage, falsely accusing him of leaving Moonves a message stating he didn’t want to be a part of the show.
Because the show was not picked up, Columbia TV sued The Wonder Years alum for $25 million for “sabotaging the show.” In the end, an agreement was reached. The actor would return the money he had been paid for the show, and the lawsuit would be dropped.
“It was a terrifying experience,” Stern told Page Six. “It was unfathomable what was going on. I felt like I was in quicksand. What started as a wonderful thing, it just turned sour.” Stern said the incident hurt his career and left him “embarrassed” and “afraid of the industry.” “It wore off relatively quickly,” he noted, “but I felt changed.”
Although Stern still does not know what really happened, he wrote in his book, “Thank God for the MeToo movement. And F— Brett Ratner, F—Jeremy Piven F— Les Moonves, and F— that top-level executive at Columbia!”
In 2018, three women came forward accusing Piven of sexual misconduct. Piven has denied the allegations of inappropriate behavior and referred to himself as “collateral damage” of the #MeToo movement. Ratner has also refuted all past allegations against him.
