'Who Rules the World' stops production

Production has stopped on the upcoming TNT unscripted series "Who Rules the World" following a public admission last week by executive producer Morgan Spurlock of past sexual misconduct.

"Production on 'Who Rules the World' (working title) has been suspended until further review," a TNT spokesperson said in a statement to variety.com.

In the early stages of production, "Who Rules the World" is an unscripted series focusing on a wide range of women's issues.

The project is produced by Spurlock's Warrior Poets and Sarah Jessica Parker's Pretty Matches Productions with Refinery29 and Turner's Studio T.

Refinery29 and Pretty Matches said in a joint statement: "In light of recent revelations, Pretty Matches and Refinery29 are severing ties with Morgan Spurlock. We stand in solidarity with the victims."

"We are suspending production on 'Who Rules the World' (WT) to reevaluate the best path forward for the project, and are more determined than ever to share women's stories through this series."

On Thursday, Spurlock announced that he would step down from his post at Warrior Poets after admitting on Twitter that when he was in college, he was accused of raping a female classmate and that he had settled an eight-year-old sexual harassment allegation at his office.

Spurlock's post detailed the time he says he had sex with a female classmate only to later learn that she believed she had been raped. "I am part of the problem," he said.

"When I was in college, a girl who I hooked up with on a one night stand accused me of rape," Spurlock wrote.

"Not outright. There were no charges or investigations, but she wrote about the instance in a short story writing class and called me by name."

--IANS

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