Some Hollywood Publicists Have Planned To Keep Their Clients Away From Ryan Seacrest On The Oscars Red Carpet

Ryan Seacrest hasn’t had such a great time in the press this week. Suzie Hardy – the former wardrobe stylist who first came forward with sexual harassment allegations against him – decided to spill the alleged details to Variety. The allegations ranged from unwanted romantic attention all the way up to crotch-grabbing and boner-rubbing. Ryan’s attorney released a statement accusing Suzie of a $15 million shake down, and Ryan himself followed that up by releasing his own statement. Still, the allegations may keep celebrities from wanting to talk to him at the Oscars on Sunday.

Here’s Ryan’s statement:

“Much has been said about the #MeToo and Times Up movement(s) and the importance of providing women and men with the opportunity to share their stories of workplace misconduct, in an effort to change our culture and the systemic inequalities that exist. I absolutely support this cause unequivocally and applaud all the brave souls who have come forward to share their stories.

Sadly, last fall I became one of the accused, which I promptly revealed proactively to the network involved and to the public. And to be equally clear, those accusations were then investigated by an independent third-party over the course of a two-month process and involved dozens of interviews that included me, the accused and countless others. Ultimately, my name was cleared. I eagerly participated in the investigation in order to demonstrate my innocence because I know my truth, and I believe in due process.”

Ryan ended his statement by calling Variety’s story “salacious,” before slapping at Variety for not contacting him in any way for his side of the story. He also echoed his attorney’s statement by accusing Suzie of making up lies in an attempt to scam him for millions. E! stuck by their assertion that an investigation discovered nothing sufficient, and Ryan was set to host E!’s red carpet broadcast at the Oscars this Sunday.

Despite Ryan’s denials, Page Six claims that many Hollywood publicist are boycotting Ryan on Sunday. Several publicists say that their famous clients won’t be conducting interviews with Ryan on the red carpet. One publicist told Page Six that Ryan is usually “the one that you want,” but it wouldn’t be a good look to speak with him this year, considering how important the conversations surrounding #MeToo and Time’s Up have been.

Another publicist said it might depend on the client, but there would be absolutely no way if it was an actress involved in the #MeToo movement.

The publicists Page Six spoke to said they might consider sending clients to do a red carpet interview with Giuliana Rancic, or they might just skip the stop at E! all together. One source said: “Why risk it? There’s plenty of other places for clients to get the exposure.”

That sucks for Ryan, who I’m so sure is used to being the most popular boy at E! that none of this will make any sense to him. And it sucks for E!’s camera crew who will probably spend most of the night shooting B-roll footage of people entering the theater to use for next year’s promos. But one person who I’m sure isn’t complaining is Giuliana Rancic. For once in her red carpet life, she won’t hear the words, “Sorry we don’t have Ryan, is Giuliana ok?”

Pic: E! News via YouTube