Andrew Callaghan Responds to Sexual Assault Allegations: ‘Devastated’

Indie filmmaker Andrew Callaghan, known for his man-on-the-street Channel 5 YouTube interviews and HBO documentary “This Place Rules,” has addressed allegations of sexual misconduct that were made against him in early January.

In a statement sent to Variety, Callaghan’s legal representative said, “Andrew is devastated that he is being accused of any type of physical or mental coercion against anyone. Conversations about pressure and consent are extremely important and Andrew wants to have these conversations, so he can continue to learn and grow. While every dynamic is open to interpretation and proper communication is critical from all those involved, repeated requests for money should not be part of these conversations.”

The statement continues, “With that, balanced communication is paramount to any relationship dynamic and Andrew vows to be better in this regard, while reminding his audience that while even one concerned partner is too many, there are always multiple sides to a story. Andrew is fully committed to working with the appropriate professionals to better understand himself and ways he can grow and improve as a human being, especially with his growing platform and the vulnerabilities it brings.”

A woman named Caroline Elise alleged that Callaghan had stayed at her house and “wore [her] down” with requests to have sex until she agreed. “[He] eventually got my consent because he wore me down,” she said in a TikTok video. “It’s even more hard to have to relive the trauma that I endured every single day by seeing this man as a social justice warrior, as someone who cares about human rights, get a platform. You shouldn’t be supporting him.”

Another woman named Dana had a similar accusation days later. She alleged that Callaghan had pressured her into having sex in her car after a previous sexual encounter that that she found “mean” and “demeaning.” “I told him to stop. I told him to get off of me multiple times,” she said in a video posted to TikTok. “He tried to put my hand down his pants and I was fighting against him during this, telling him to please stop.”

HBO released Callaghan’s documentary “This Place Rules” on Dec. 30, and the film was produced by Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim and A24. On Jan. 12, Heidecker addressed the allegations against Callaghan and said there are “no plans” to work with him again.

“We’re aware of the allegations. We take them very seriously. It’s been very sad and disappointing, to say the least. I just want to clarify a couple things. We have no professional relationship with Andrew at this time and have no plans going forward to have any relationship with him,” Heidecker said on his podcast. “We did produce the movie, and I feel terrible that this film now has these allegations tied to it because some very good people worked very hard on it. But it’s just a movie, and I want to say we believe these women that came forward and, of course, totally condemn the type of behavior that Andrew’s being accused of.”