Chris Hardwick got emotional on Sunday night’s episode of Talking Dead as he addressed the allegations made against him.
“I really just want to take a minute and I want to say that I’m so appreciative to be standing here right now, and I want to thank you, The Walking Dead community, for all your support over these past couple months,” Hardwick said at the opening of the show.
He continued: “This show is not just a job to me. This is a vital part of my life. This has been a sanctuary these last seven years we’ve been here.”
READ MORE: Chris Hardwick returning to AMC after sexual assault investigation
“It’s been with me through good times and bad and I’m so grateful to the fans, producers and the amazing casts of both of these shows for allowing me to come here and be a part of this community every week,” he said.
“This is what this is, a community, and we’re on the precipice of a lot of changes on both Walking Dead shows in the coming weeks and months, and I am so looking forward to going on that journey with you. And I’ve said the following words a million times, countless times, and I’ve never been more thankful than I am in this moment to say to you: I am Chris Hardwick and this is Talking Dead,” Hardwick concluded.
In June, AMC announced that the second season of Talking with Chris Hardwick, which was set to premiere June 17, would be pulled from broadcast following allegations from his ex-girlfriend, Chloe Dykstra, 29.
WATCH BELOW: The latest on Chris Hardwick
_-_HIRES_848x480_1257011779907.jpg?w=1200&quality=70&strip=all)
She accused him of sexual assault and emotional abuse in a Medium essay written in June. In the essay, Dykstra detailed an abusive relationship with an unnamed man who many readers assumed was Hardwick, 46.
READ MORE: Lydia Hearst supports husband Chris Hardwick after sexual abuse allegations
Hardwick had denied Dykstra’s accusations, writing that their relationship “was not perfect” but that “at no time did I sexually assault her.”
AMC conducted an investigation into Dykstra’s allegations against Hardwick and issued a statement on the findings.
“Following a comprehensive assessment by AMC, working with Ivy Kagan Bierman of the firm Loeb & Loeb, who has considerable experience in this area, Chris Hardwick will return to AMC as the host of Talking Dead and Talking with Chris Hardwick,” the statement read. “We take these matters very seriously and given the information available to us after a very careful review, including interviews with numerous individuals, we believe returning Chris to work is the appropriate step.”
READ MORE: Chris Hardwick’s ex, Chloe Dykstra, details alleged sex assault, abuse in essay
Last month, Dykstra tweeted a statement saying that she did not participate in the AMC investigation.
“I have been adamant since I came forward with my essay that I never set out to ruin the career of the person I spoke about,” she said in the statement. “I originally wrote my essay so I could move on with my life, and now I intend to do so. Thank you, again, to those who have supported me during this.”
Yvette Nicole Brown had been tapped to fill in for Hardwick on Talking Dead during the assessment process, but she will now appear as a guest on the premiere episode instead.
It’s unclear when Hardwick’s Talking with Chris Hardwick will return.
Watch Hardwick’s return to ‘Talking Dead’ in the video above.
Comments