MeToo, Five Years Later: No One’s Fully Returned From “Cancellation” — No, Not Even Louis C.K.
Amid the torrent of accusations leveled against powerful Hollywood men in the frenzied first few months of the #MeToo era, industry observers often shared the same jaded expectation. Short of arrest or indictment, the thinking went, the accused would be back on their feet after a brief time-out and a few memory-cleansing news cycles, carrying on with their careers unaffected. The dollar is king; Hollywood always forgets; etc.
This hasn’t happened. In fact, comebacks — if they materialize at all — are strikingly and significantly circumscribed. One of #MeToo’s greatest victories, at the practical level, has been its unrelenting administration of professional punishment.