Bulletproof is no more: UK broadcaster Sky has cancelled the police procedural following multiple allegations of sexual harassment leveled against series star and co-creator Noel Clarke.
On April 29, The Guardian published a report in which 20 women came forward to accuse Clarke of groping, harassment and bullying, and taking and sharing sexually explicit pictures and videos without their consent. At the time, Clarke denied the allegations and released the following statement:
“In a 20-year career, I have put inclusivity and diversity at the forefront of my work and never had a complaint made against me. If anyone who has worked with me has ever felt uncomfortable or disrespected, I sincerely apologise. I vehemently deny any sexual misconduct or wrongdoing and intend to defend myself against these false allegations.”
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Meanwhile, Clarke’s co-star and Bulletproof co-creator Ashley Walters released a statement of his own, which in part read: “My thoughts are with the women who have come forward and told their awful stories. I am in shock and deeply saddened by what I have heard on a multitude of levels. I could never condone behaviour of this nature, neither in nor out of the workplace, and whilst Noel has been a friend and colleague for several years, I cannot standby [sic] and ignore these allegations.”
According to Variety, which first reported the Bulletproof cancellation, a fourth season consisting of eight episodes had already been commissioned in January. After the allegations came to light, several options were considered to continue Bulletproof without Clarke — among them, recasting his character, Aaron Bishop — but Sky ultimately decided that Clarke was too “heavily intertwined” in the production to move forward.
The CW served as the Stateside home for Bulletproof. All episodes were scrubbed from The CW’s website and CW Seed on April 30, one day after the initial allegations emerged. Its final episode aired March 29.
