The former chairman of HBO has reportedly been placed on administrative leave in his current role as president of Legendary Television after an upcoming book gives further insight into allegations that he choked a former staffer. The Hollywood Reporter broke the news surrounding Chris Albrecht on Monday night, detailing how the new book, It’s Not TV: The Spectacular Rise, Revolution, and Future of HBO by Felix Gillette and John Koblin, provides new information on a previously reported allegation that Albrecht choked former exec VP and HBO “rising star” Sasha Emerson in the early 1990s. A rep for Albrecht denied the allegations while a Legendary spokesperson confirmed the period of leave to The Hollywood Reporter. The spokesperson declined to comment on the matter further. According to the publication, which has seen an early draft of the book, the incident allegedly took place in Emerson’s office in the summer of 1991. The pair were married but had previously had an affair, with the alleged incident taking place months after they broke up. A police report was not filed but Emerson alerted a friend about what allegedly went down, as well as HBO executive producer Michael Fuchs. “After more than 30 years an old, flawed story is now being refurbished and recycled for the sake of sales. I have sincerely apologized to those whom I offended with disrespect and utterly unacceptable behavior. But that doesn’t sell books or generate media attention. Some things do indeed age well; but bad reporting does not,” Albrecht said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. After the incident, Emerson reportedly underwent mediation with HBO, accepted an undisclosed settlement and subsequently left the network, the book says, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
