John Lasseter Taking Leave of Absence From Pixar Amid "Missteps" - Sensationalist Headlines

[quote]Disney Animation head John Lasseter is taking a leave of absence from Pixar after acknowledging "painful" conversations and unspecified "missteps," he wrote in a memo to staff on Tuesday obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. Lasseter's statement arrived as THR was preparing [URL="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/john-lasseters-pattern-alleged-misconduct-detailed-by-disney-pixar-insiders-1059594"]a story detailing alleged misconduct[/URL] by the executive at Disney/Pixar. Lasseter is best known as one of the founders of Pixar, which began as a part of the graphics group at Lucasfilm. Along with Ed Catmull, he popularized CGI in animation with early films like Toy Story, A Bug's Life and Monster's Inc. [/quote] [URL]https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/john-lasseter-taking-leave-absence-pixar-missteps-1057113[/URL] [quote]One longtime Pixar employee says Lasseter was known for "grabbing, kissing, making comments about physical attributes." Rashida Jones is still credited as a writer on Toy Story 4, the next installment in the beloved franchise. But, sources tell The Hollywood Reporter, the actress and her writing partner at the time, Will McCormack, left the project early on after John Lasseter, the acclaimed head of Pixar and Walt Disney Animation, made an unwanted advance. Jones and McCormack did not respond to repeated requests for comment. Disney declined to comment on the alleged incident though a studio source said the departure was over "creative differences." Multiple sources spoke with THR but asked not to be named out of fear that their careers in the tight-knit animation community would be damaged. Based on the accounts of former Pixar insiders as well as sources in the animation community, the alleged incident was not an isolated occurrence. One longtime Pixar employee says Lasseter, who is well-known for hugging employees and others in the entertainment community, was also known by insiders for “grabbing, kissing, making comments about physical attributes.” Multiple sources say Lasseter is known to drink heavily at company social events such as premiere parties but this source says the behavior was not always confined to such settings. [/quote] [URL]https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/john-lasseters-pattern-alleged-misconduct-detailed-by-disney-pixar-insiders-1059594[/URL]

My childhood is in shambles

oh for fucks sake

So like shit, how big is he in pixar? Is he part of the reason toy story is a legendary masterpiece? Because hot damn

He's the guy behind all of the Cars movies.

[QUOTE=Inspecter;52912983]He's the guy behind all of the Cars movies.[/QUOTE] Well yeah but he's also the guy behind all of the Toy Story movies, having directed the first two and written all three of them (and he also wrote A Bugs Life). And ofc he's been a producer for all of their films since again he was a co founder. He’s a pretty huge part of Pixar so this is a big deal for them.

He was also executive producer for all of Pixar's films and everything Disney Animation did the past decade.

[QUOTE=J!NX;52912981]So like shit, how big is he in pixar? Is he part of the reason toy story is a legendary masterpiece? Because hot damn[/QUOTE] He has been with the company since the beginning pretty much. He was the director of Toy Story 1/2, Bugs Life, and Cars 1/2. He's been the executive producer of pretty much every Pixar film and a few early 90s Disney films. So yeah, he's a kind of a big deal. EDIT: Aaaaand clocks.

[QUOTE=J!NX;52912981]So like shit, how big is he in pixar?[/QUOTE] He's played a high standing role in every single Pixar film and a huge amount of Disney ones.

[QUOTE=postal;52912993]Well yeah but he's also the guy behind the Toy Story movies, having directed the first two and written all three of them plus also A Bugs Life. And ofc he's been a producer for all of their films since again he was a co founder. He’s a pretty huge part of Pixar so this is a big deal for them.[/QUOTE] Also brought Studio Ghibli to US

[QUOTE=GameDev;52912972]My childhood is in shambles. But honestly, John's been an inspiration to me for a very long time. Super disappointing :/[/QUOTE] You can idolize someone's career and artistic integrity even if the person acts like an ass sometimes. What he did wrong doesn't make his work less important.

It really feels like at this rate, everyone in Hollywood is eventually going to either be exposed as a harasser or revealed to have been harassed.

[QUOTE=Segab;52913187]You can idolize someone's career and artistic integrity even if the person acts like an ass sometimes. What he did wrong doesn't make his work less important.[/QUOTE] i'd probably accept this in most other context but when you're making movies that focus primarily on morality and human interaction it sort of sullies that part a little bit

You've gotta be fucking kidding me. This guy was one of my biggest inspirations and his work had a huge impact on me. The big man behind what I would honestly call the most touching family-oriented works ever made is just another power-abusing asshole? Great. At this point I'd really rather hear about famous entertainment people who [i]aren't[/i] sleaze bags. Please, any ray of purity to pierce though all this muck.

No... [editline]21st November 2017[/editline] I could barely stomach Louie CK but... this one is too much man

All the news coming out today just goes to show how awful and selfish people are in general. Just... [I]fuck[/I], man.

I'm not surprised. Apparently this has been an open secret at Pixar, as most things of this nature are. Makes me feel weird about having a Hawaiian shirt he designed, shit was expensive too :/

[QUOTE=GameDev;52913379]i'd probably accept this in most other context but when you're making movies that focus primarily on morality and human interaction it sort of sullies that part a little bit[/QUOTE] Nope. Strong and passionate personalities do strong things, and expecting them all to be above board and righteous and a pristine conformer to shifting cultural norms over decades is pure fantasy. Walt Disney himself was a racist paranoiac devoted more to his brand than his own family and friends, he was also the literal architect of "america's childhood". Both of those things are true, and if you think anyone else under his aegis is sacrosanct, I would recommend reading some Tim Burton interviews for a window into how Disney actually works, being neither praise nor condemnation. The artist will give a piece of the pie in the act of expression, expecting that you also got the entire pie and the whip cream on top is naive at best. Very few people can live with the entirety of their persona laid bare 24/7, and for every George Carlin there are 20 Louis CKs and 5 Richard Jeni/Robin Williams, for every Jimi Hendrix there are 5 Kurt Cobains and 20 Glen Danzigs. The reason fiction runs entertainment to the degree it does is because there are very very few people that actually match or exceed it.

[QUOTE=KingKombat;52913484]No... [editline]21st November 2017[/editline] I could barely stomach Louie CK but... this one is too much man[/QUOTE] His body of work, and just Pixar in general, is essentially a good 80% of the inspiration I built to get into animation as a career. Every decision I make in what I do is with the subthought of essentially “What Would Jesus Do”. I’m fucking devastated.

[QUOTE=GameDev;52913379]i'd probably accept this in most other context but when you're making movies that focus primarily on morality and human interaction it sort of sullies that part a little bit[/QUOTE] Maybe that's why a character is named Sully?

[quote]Actress and screenwriter Rashida Jones has addressed her exit from Pixar’s Toy Story 4 in the wake of John Lasseter, the animation studio’s chief creative officer, taking a formal leave of absence due to unspecified “missteps.” In a statement issued Tuesday and obtained by EW, Jones and her writing partner, Will McCormack, refuted a report by The Hollywood Reporter that said they parted ways with the project after Lasseter made “an unwanted advance” toward Jones. Rather, the duo said, their departure had to do with the company’s treatment of female and minority voices. “The breakneck speed at which journalists have been naming the next perpetrator renders some reporting irresponsible,” Jones and McCormack’s statement said. “We did not leave Pixar because of unwanted advances. That is untrue. We parted ways because of creative and, more importantly, philosophical differences. There is so much talent at Pixar, and we remain enormous fans of their films. However, it is also a culture where women and people of color do not have an equal creative voice.” Noting that only one of the 20 films in the company’s history was co-directed by a woman and only one was directed by a person of color, Jones and McCormack called on Pixar “to be leaders in bolstering, hiring, and promoting more diverse and female storytellers and leaders. We hope we can encourage all those who have felt like their voices could not be heard in the past to feel empowered.”[/quote] [url=http://ew.com/movies/2017/11/21/rashida-jones-addresses-pixar-exit-john-lasseter-leave/]x[/url] [quote]Jones and McCormack joined the project in 2014, and have been writing the film as a romantic comedy that doesn't continue directly from the original trilogy.[/quote] [url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2017/11/22/rashida-jones-and-writing-partner-drop-out-of-toy-story-4-citing-philosophical-differences-with-pixar]x[/url]

That wasn't flying, that was unwanted sexual advances with style. Sort of amazing how kid-friendly and timeless his movies were despite his character.

Also for those who asked how important he is, he is/was the CCO of both Pixar and Disney Animation

According to some of the insiders, they're claiming he's gonna get the boot. I mean, I and probably everyone expected it. But having some trusted insiders say it, makes it mean more.

[QUOTE=trainplane3;52915888]According to some of the insiders, they're claiming he's gonna get the boot. I mean, I and probably everyone expected it. But having some trusted insiders say it, makes it mean more.[/QUOTE] I wouldn't be so surprised, this is the same company that was willing to remove a [URL="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ExtraTERRORestrial_Alien_Encounter"]ride from its theme parks[/URL] after aligations of one of the main antagonists being in possession of child pornography. It's really a theme of Disney at this point, make them look bad they'll dump you in a heartbeat.

[QUOTE=coolgame8013;52915936]I'm wouldn't be so surprised, this is the same company that was willing to remove a [URL="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ExtraTERRORestrial_Alien_Encounter"]ride from its theme parks[/URL] after aligations of one of the main antagonist being in possession of child pornography. It's really a theme of Disney at this point, make them look bad they'll dump you in a heartbeat.[/QUOTE] Yep, a shame about AE. Stitch straight up sucks. It'd be nice if this kills off the Pixar Pier conversion but who knows.

[QUOTE=Coyoteze;52913977]His body of work, and just Pixar in general, is essentially a good 80% of the inspiration I built to get into animation as a career. Every decision I make in what I do is with the subthought of essentially “What Would Jesus Do”. I’m fucking devastated.[/QUOTE] It's worth noting that while John Lasseter is a really important figure in animation as a whole and Pixar, he sure as heck didn't make Toy Story or any of the following films by himself. Many people have had a hand in Pixar and I don't think his indiscretions reflect too poorly on Pixar, at least for me. Though the fact they put up with it for so long is problematic and the complaints that Pixar isn't great when it comes to inclusivity of women and minorities isn't fun to hear. Kinda typical in the film-making industry, sadly.

[QUOTE=trainplane3;52915888]According to some of the insiders, they're claiming he's gonna get the boot. I mean, I and probably everyone expected it. But having some trusted insiders say it, makes it mean more.[/QUOTE] It's obvious if someone hurts business in any way and takes self-paid six-month leave after that then that basically means that person is fired. Exact same thing happened to Raja Koduri of Radeon Technologies after Vega has flopped.

Americans really love holding people up to Jesus standards. It's fucking weird. Nobody is a paragon, everyone has done somthing shitty that stepped on someone elses comfortability. 2 in 10 posters on Facepunch probably diddled their siblings as children for all we know. That's just the world we live in.

Dang he was at my unis commencement speech back in 2015 :< [QUOTE=Bomimo;52918802][B]2 in 10 posters on Facepunch probably diddled their siblings as children for all we know.[/B] That's just the world we live in.[/QUOTE] Uhhhh.... :ohno: So your saying over 500 members diddled their siblings?