Lenkov gets the chop

[vrinda]

This happened on the CSI shows all the time, though there were times when they gave the characters a send-off, but some disappeared without a trace. There was a female lab technician on CSI: Vegas who was written out of the show after several seasons. She said she was going to back to Oregon or Washington to live with her sister and work in a lab there. The producers said they were "going in a different direction," but I didn't see any different direction. The same thing happened with Eddie Cibirian on CSI: Miami. The producers had him killed off, because they wanted to focus on the "core" cast members - Horatio, Delko, Calleigh, Natalia, Walter, and Ryan. They didn't have room for one more?

As for Lenkov, he was indifferent to the original show from the beginning, with the bad casting and bad writing.

[vrinda]

The reason why we may not be hearing much from those who witnessed Lenkov's bad behavior might be because the crew might have signed disclosure agreements when they started working for him, which barred them from speaking out about their experiences on the set. I don't know if that is customary is on TV and film sets, but it might be what happened.

[Mr. Mike]

Yikes, is this the first discussion that went to two pages?

I think people are hesitant to say bad things in public because then they will be labelled as potential whistleblowers or blabbermouths by other companies where they apply for work.

Here are some relatively anonymous comments after the article about Lenkov in Variety (https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/pet...ver-1234700376)

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CBS or any other studio for that matter don’t take any of this seriously. If they’re making money of these people they elevate them tho where they feel untouchable. I’ve worked in the industry for 30 plus years and have never worked on a more toxic show and in an industry that runs toxic that saying something. His producing crews were the most misogynistic and hateful group towards Women I’ve ever witnessed and it saturated the below the line crew as well. He should never be allowed to run another show, but some studio will hire him. Same with his producers the belonged to his “good ole boys club” really a thing. His EP’s, AD’s, Stunt Cord, ( finally canned case he was a hack and dangerous) all awful

Examples of how to treat crew. Toxic doesn’t really tell the story on his sets. Some actors with enough power wouldn’t allow him on the set when they were in a scene. Is that the kind of human that should be running a show? Any show? Some day the HR departments will actually serve the purpose that say they are there to serve and them guys like this won’t last 20 or more years in positions of power and get let go with massive severance packages. F this guy and his group of cronies! Good riddance!

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I had the great displeasure of working for him. He took a sick, sadistic pleasure in beating writers, crew members and assistants down until they cried or puked. He is the worst. And his apology, no doubt written by a PR professional, is meant to elicit empathy for himself, but is wholly disingenuous. There is no way he didn’t realize the toxicity he caused. He should not be allowed anywhere near a show again.

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It wasn’t about the cigars (that’s just to help set the “scene”), it was about the TYPE of chatter in the room.

I worked on both H50 and MPI. Lenkov needed an attitude adjustment and to learn how to still be a tough cookie in the industry but without all the toxicity.

Agree w/you that people such as this shouldn’t be barred completely (unless they’re a danger). Their contributions are still valuable. IMO, they SHOULD be demoted w/reduction in salary, benefits AND ESPECIALLY POWER; and, be made to face their misdeeds/negative mindset w/the staff. Also, undergo in-depth counseling as terms of employment/contract. Firing them won’t always solve the problems, it just moves them around. These guys need Redirection, Rehabilitation, and Monitoring to produce positive results for them, those working with them, and future projects.

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I worked for him. He was a bully plain and simple. His shows were all about sunshine and ohana but he made the experience miserable for everyone. Actors, crew, post people, the writers. One of the worst reputations in the industry. This article is just the beginning of the story.

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I know several people who worked with him on various shows and I’m thrilled he has been fired. He had it coming for years, he created a toxic environment on sets, nobody had a good word to say about him as a person. Regardless of your talent it does not mean you can treat people like dirt. It’s not only woman he treated badly, it was everyone that was not part of his ‘club’. Good riddance.

[Bobbi]

Nope, this is the second thread that went two pages. The first was the word on the reboot's cancellation.