Judith Light hasn’t fully processed Jeffrey Tambor’s departure from Transparent in the wake of sexual harassment claims.
“I have not spoken to him,” Light, 69, told Entertainment Tonight on Sunday, March 4 at an Oscars party. “Everybody’s a little shell-shocked, I would say.”
Still, Light, who plays needy matriarch Shelly Pfefferman on the acclaimed series, is hopeful that the show will continue. “We’re looking at a fifth season,” she said. “And we’ll see when we’re gonna shoot that. So, we’ll see.”
Amazon Studios announced in February that it had parted ways with Tambor, 73, who has been accused of misconduct by Trace Lysette, a frequent guest star on Transparent, and former assistant Van Barnes.
In response to the allegations, the streaming service launched an internal investigation, which has since been completed. While the details of the investigation were not revealed, sources told Deadline, that Tambor’s behavior “could not be justified or excused under scrutiny.”
The actor, who won an Emmy for playing transgender character Maura Pfefferman, reacted to his firing on February 15. “I am profoundly disappointed in Amazon’s handling of these false accusations against me,” he said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. He then took a shot at series creator Jill Soloway for “unfair characterization of me as someone who ever cause harm to any my fellow castmates.”
“As I have consistently stated, I deeply regret if any action of mine was ever misinterpreted by anyone and I will continue to vehemently defend myself,” he continued. “I also deeply regret that this ground-breaking show, which changed so many lives, is now in jeopardy. That, to me, is the biggest heartbreak.”
Tambor admitted in a statement to Us Weekly in November that he isn’t always “the easiest person to work with” but said he has “never been a predator — ever.”
