Boardwalk Empire actor Michael Pitt has been arrested on sexual assault and domestic violence charges.
According to the New York Post and Variety, the 44-year-old has been accused of multiple assaults by an ex-girlfriend stemming from four incidents taking place between 2020 and 2021.
She alleges that Pitt sexually assaulted and attacked her with a cinderblock and a wooden plank at the actor’s Bushwick, Brooklyn, home. He is also accused of strangling her.
The actor, whose credits also include Dawson’s Creek and films such as The Dreamers, Seven Psychopaths and Funny Games, pleaded not guilty after his arrest on Friday and is now out on bail. He is next due in court in June.
“Unfortunately, we live in a world where somebody like Mr Pitt – an accomplished professional who would never so much as contemplate these crimes – can be arrested on the uncorroborated word of an unhinged individual,” his lawyer said in a statement to Variety. “In reality, this baseless claim is suspiciously raised some four or five years after the alleged incident, at a time when the two parties were in a completely consensual and voluntary relationship. This case will be dismissed.”
Pitt was previously arrested in 2022 and was charged with assault and petty larceny after allegedly hitting a man and taking his phone. Two months later he was hospitalised after being accused of throwing items at people from a building. The actor was deemed to be “emotionally disturbed”.
He had most recently been seen in Netflix thriller Reptile and fact-based boxing drama Day of the Fight. He will next feature in true crime drama You Can’t Win.
The Guardian has reached out to his reps for comment.
• In the US, the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). In the UK, call the national domestic abuse helpline on 0808 2000 247, or visit Women’s Aid. In Australia, the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines may be found via www.befrienders.org.
