Pixar's John Lasseter steps down after sexual misconduct allegations

Following a wave of powerful men in Hollywood being accused of serial sexual misconduct and abuse – including Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Louis CK – Disney’s head of animation John Lasseter is also feeling repercussions following years of inappropriate behaviour towards his female colleagues. The Pixar co-founder will take a six-month leave of absence from the company for what he describes himself euphemistically as “missteps”.

“I’ve recently had a number of difficult conversations that have been very painful for me,” he writes in a staff memo, which was shared by the Hollywood Reporter. “It’s never easy to face your missteps, but it’s the only way to learn from them. As a result, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the leader I am today compared to the mentor, advocate and champion I want to be. It’s been brought to my attention that I have made some of you feel disrespected or uncomfortable. That was never my intent.”

His decision to “face his missteps” comes ahead of the Hollywood Reporter’s expose of his alleged years of misconduct featuring comment from Pixar and Disney insiders, with one of Lasseter's longtime colleagues saying the executive is well known for "grabbing, kissing, making comments about physical attributes."

Disney commented with a statement saying: “We are committed to maintaining an environment in which all employees are respected and empowered to do their best work. We appreciate John’s candor and sincere apology and fully support his sabbatical.”

Another former Pixar employee suggested that letting Lasseter off with a leave of absence is "trivializing this behavior." They have a point. While others alleged of sexual misconduct, like Louis CK, Jeffrey Tambor and Charlie Rose, have seen swift firings from their high profile jobs following the revelations, the six-month sabbatical Lasseter is facing doesn’t quite cut the mustard. As the anonymous Pixar employee adds: "To sum this up as unwanted hugs is belittling and demeaning. If it was just unwanted hugs, he wouldn't be stepping down."

Lasseter was due to co-direct Toy Story 4 with Josh Cooley. Josh Cooley will now direct the film solo.