Chris Hardwick, founder of the Nerdist empire and host of NBC game show The Wall and AMC’s Talking Dead, has been removed from the Nerdist website following allegations of sexual abuse and “long-term abuse” by Hardwick’s former girlfriend, Chloe Dykstra.
Legendary Entertainment, which owns Nerdist, released a statement explaining that Hardwick had not had any involvement with Nerdist since his contract ran out in December 2017. The statement also noted, “The company has removed all reference to Mr. Hardwick even as the original Founder of Nerdist pending further investigation.”
— Nerdist (@nerdist) June 15, 2018
Dykstra, a TV host and personality, quietly posted her #MeToo story on Medium on Friday, and the post went viral shortly thereafter. In it, she details a three-year relationship in which she was restricted from going out and having male friends, and also sexually assaulted. “I lost myself both mentally and physically. I ceased to be. I was an ex-person,” she wrote. She did not name Hardwick but references such as a “mildly successful podcaster” who became a “powerhouse CEO of his own company” made clear she was detailing her time with the Nerdist founder.
I quietly posted an article today, unlisted on Medium. It clearly made the rounds. I’m overwhelmed and I want to thank all of you for your support and kind words- they mean so much to me. I may take some time off the internet, please know your support means everything to me.
— Chloe Dykstra (@skydart) June 15, 2018
Hardwick founded Nerdist in 2008 as a go-to source for nerd news and all things geek from comics to video games. With a staff of 30 producing for multiple channels across videos, newsletters, podcasts, and live events, it was hailed as an Internet era juggernaut.
Hardwick declined to comment to Deadline. NBC and AMC did not respond to requests for the same.