Chris Noth Breaks Silence on Sexual Assault Allegations That Led to Equalizer Firing: ‘It’s a Salacious Story’ But ‘Not a True One’

Michael Ausiello
·3 min read
1
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Nearly two years after being accused of sexual assault by multiple women, Chris Noth is speaking out about the firestorm that led to his dismissal from CBS’ The Equalizer and erasure from Max’s And Just Like That.

In an interview with USA Today, the 68-year-old TV vet once again denied the allegations, but conceded, “I strayed on my wife, and it’s devastating to her and not a very pretty picture. What it isn’t is a crime.”

More from TVLine

It was back in Dec. 2021 that two women alleged to The Hollywood Reporter that Noth raped them in separate incidents, one in 2004 and the other in 2015. “The accusations against me made by individuals I met years, even decades, ago are categorically false,” Noth said in a statement at the time. “These stories could’ve been from 30 years ago or 30 days ago — no always means no — that is a line I did not cross. The encounters were consensual. It’s difficult not to question the timing of these stories coming out. I don’t know for certain why they are surfacing now, but I do know this: I did not assault these women.”

Days later, a third woman came forward in The Daily Beast to accuse Noth of sexual assault. The actor denied that allegation as well.

In the aftermath of the scandal, TVLine exclusively reported that And Just Like That scrapped plans to “reunite” Noth’s deceased Mr. Big with Parker’s Carrie in the Season 1 finale. He was also fired from his series-regular role on The Equalizer (triggering this reaction from co-star Queen Latifah).

“There’s nothing I can say to change anyone’s mind when you have that kind of a tidal wave,” Noth tells USA Today. “It sounds defensive. I’m not. There’s no criminal court. There’s no criminal trial. There’s nothing for me to get on the stand about and get my story out, get witnesses. And there’s even more absurd add-ons that are completely ridiculous, that have absolutely no basis in fact.”

Per USA Today, Noth — whose notable TV work includes Law & Order and The Good Wife — is currently directing and starring in Eugene Ionesco’s play Rhinoceros at a theater in rural Massachusetts.

“I’m not going to lay down and just say it’s over,” he adds of his upended career. “It’s a salacious story, but it’s just not a true one. And I can’t just say ‘Well, OK, that’s it for me’ because of that. I’m an actor. I have other things that I want to do creatively. And I have children to support. I can’t just rest on my laurels. So yeah, I have enough to let a year drift, but I don’t know how to gauge or judge getting back into the club, the business, because corporations are frightened…. I have to just continue on. It’s rough, because people are scared, and their fear leads them. And I have to just persevere because I still have a creative life.”

Best of TVLine

Get more from TVLine.com: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter

Click here to read the full article.