Timothy Busfield was dropped by Innovative Artists hours after the “West Wing” alum appeared in court for the first time to face child sex abuse charges on Wednesday, TheWrap has learned.
The agency’s call to drop the actor/director after years of being a client comes amid a flurry of controversy for the performer, who is married to former “Little House on the Prairie” star Melissa Gilbert.
Busfield was charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and an open count of child abuse, stemming from an investigation into his relationship with child actors he directed on Fox’s “The Cleaning Lady.” He directed six episodes of the series from 2022 to 2025 and executive produced 14 episodes.
While an additional allegation has surfaced against Busfield, he vehemently denied the accusations in a video shared before turning himself over to the authorities in New Mexico on Tuesday.
“I’m going to confront these lies,” he said a video statement. “They are horrible. They are all lies, and I did not do anything to those little boys.”
Busfield added: “I’m gonna fight it with a great team, and I’m gonna be exonerated … I know I am, because this is all so wrong and all lies. So hang in there and hopefully I’m out real soon and back to work. I love everybody for supporting me, thank you.”
Following his Wednesday court appearance, Busfield is currently being held without bond and remains in custody ahead of a pretrial detention hearing.
Warner Bros., one of the production companies for “The Cleaning Lady,” told TheWrap in a statement: “Our top priority is the health and safety of our cast and crew across all productions. The Studio takes any and all allegations of misconduct very seriously. In response to law enforcement requests, the Studio cooperated by expediting its processes to share the report of its third-party investigation, even though that report could have been withheld as privileged. The Studio has a clear non-retaliation policy. The Studio informs and trains production employees on this policy at the beginning of employment. The policy is implemented and monitored throughout the course of production to ensure employees feel comfortable reporting any concerns.”
