Actress Chloe Dykstra Accuses Nerd Allfather Chris Hardwick Of Abuse
The Wrap reports that Chloe Dykstra, who is an actress, cosplayer and daughter of an Oscar-winning special-effects guy, wrote an essay for Medium where she accuses an unnamed ex-boyfriend of being a controlling and abusive asshole. The story was unlisted, because I guess she wanted this to be a quiet revelation, but this is the new technological era where nothing is left unlisted for long.
Because I love to start my mornings off with sunshine and rainbows, I read the whole essay. And it. Is. Not. Fun.
In the piece, 29-year-old Chloe makes vaguely veiled allusions (it’s perfectly clear who this is about; could not be more clear who this man is) that 46-year-old nerd-god Chris Hardwick was a raging bastard during their 3-year relationship. Chris is known for his Nerdist brand, hosting MTV’s Singled Out in the 90s, and hosting the Walking Dead after shows, and is currently married to Lydia Hearst.
The abuse claims range from classic douche bag (not letting Chloe have male friends), to aggressively uncool (not letting Chloe speak much in public), to standard work bullshit (trying to blacklist her career), to expecting her to have sex with him whenever he wanted. Chloe writes that she even had an ectopic pregnancy and after her surgery, her asshole boyfriend asked the doctor:
“When do you think I can have sex with her again?”
Chloe also listed the rules Chris allegedly handed down to her two weeks into them dating. Surprisingly, Chris didn’t instruct Chloe that when he wasn’t with her, she was to watch all of his old TV shows. Maybe even Chris thought making her watch The Wall was going too far.
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I “should not want to go somewhere at night”. My nights were expected to be reserved for him, as he had a busy schedule. This alienated me from my friends.
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I was to not have close male friends unless we worked together. All photos of male friends were to be removed from my apartment. This was heartbreaking for me, as my best friend happened to be male.
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As he was sober, I was not to drink alcohol. Before we began dating he said, “I noticed you have a glass of wine with dinner. That’s going to stop.”
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I was not to speak in public places (elevators, cars with drivers, restaurants where tables were too close) as he believed that people recognized him and were listening to our conversations. Our dinners out were usually silent, him on his phone.
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I wasn’t allowed to take a photo of us. (Eventually, he softened on this rule, but was very stern about me asking permission.)
Chloe should’ve told him that since he’s a nerd and allegedly controlling, he needs to date his soulmate: a sex robot. But even the sex robot would leave him.
Chloe ended her piece with a note about her future:
“PS: To the man who tried to ruin my future: A sincere and heartfelt apology could have made my last four years a hell of a lot easier. The person I used to date would try to sue me due to pride- I would not recommend it. I have audio/video that will support and prove many of the things I’ve stated in this post. I’ve chosen not to include it for your sake, in the hopes that the person you’ve become will do the right thing.”
She also tweeted her thanks for the support she received:
I quietly posted an article today, unlisted on Medium. It clearly made the rounds. I’m overwhelmed and I want to thank all of you for your support and kind words- they mean so much to me. I may take some time off the internet, please know your support means everything to me.
— Chloe Dykstra (@skydart) June 15, 2018
The nerdosphere reacted pretty quickly with people coming to both Chloe and Chris’ defence. Some thought Chloe’s account was exaggerated, others thought she was making a big deal out of your average, everyday asshole ex-boyfriend. But Chloe found an ally in Kathy Griffin who is solidly on Team Chloe.
Get it together, bitch when are you going to get it? United we stand, divided we fall.
— Kathy Griffin (@kathygriffin) June 15, 2018
Chris has yet to respond to the allegations, but if they end up being true and AMC fires him, he could always go back to MTV where morality always lives in shades of grey. Speaking of MTV, I’m waiting to hear from Chris’ ex-fiancee Jacinda Barrett from The Real World: London, and more importantly, the ghost of Jacinda’s dog Legend.
Pic: WENN.com