This past week, numerous women came forward on social media to speak about their experiences with Expanse actor Cas Anvar. Their accusations ranged from sexual assault to pushy messages to inappropriate contact with underage girls. In response, Alcon, the studio behind the hit Amazon Prime show, announced it hired an independent firm to investigate the allegations and help determine how to proceed.
Following the initial allegations, many members of the senior leadership of The Expanse took to social media to speak out. James S.A. Corey, the writers of the books and members of the show’s creative staff, thanked the women for speaking up. Several of the actors released statements saying the allegations are heard and being taken seriously, and producer Daniel Abraham said he supports the investigation and is giving it the “gravity” it deserves. You can check out his tweet below…
Once the initial allegation came out, more and more people started coming forward. Many of the stories center around fan conventions and seem to involve the actor inappropriately touching or assaulting women or being pushy or forceful in trying to get women either back to his hotel room or to agree to Skype with him. Some of those who refused were allegedly inundated with numerous direct messages or texts pressuring them to change their minds or accusing them of lying, and some were allegedly even underage at the time. Others were allegedly sent sexually graphic messages, even if they didn't have a sexual relationship with Anvar.
Cas Anvar himself hasn’t commented on the allegations. There’s also no timeline on how long the investigation might take. Everyone involved has been very clear about how seriously they’re taking this matter, but some have also asked fans to allow the investigation to be done diligently and properly. Exactly how long that’ll take is anyone’s guess at this point. There are a lot of people to interview, and we’re not living under the most normal of circumstances right now.
Production on Season 5 of The Expanse reportedly concluded back in February prior to the recent shutdowns, but we have not seen any episodes yet. It’s unclear if the allegations around Cas Anvar will alter any of these episodes or convince the production team to go in a different direction. I’m sure they will update us on that whenever the investigation concludes and a decision is reached.
The Expanse is produced by Alcon Entertainment. The studio sold the first three seasons of the show to SyFy. It was cancelled by the cable channel back in 2018, but a deal was later struck with Amazon Prime to continue the series. Like many sci-fi shows, it has a very passionate fanbase and its stars are popular on the convention circuit. We’ll keep you updated as more details become available.
