Sons of Anarchy and Mayans M.C. creator Kurt Sutter‘s firing form FX last year stirred up quite a bit of controversy, and now network boss John Landgraf has finally issued a comment about the situation. According to Variety, Landgraf addressed Sutter’s firing at the 2020 Television Critics Association conference, revealing how the network “fulfilled our contract, he fulfilled his contract, we moved on.” The outlet added that Landgraf also implied how he preferred not to comment on the falling out between the two men.
In October, Sutter’s firing was revealed, with a memo he wrote to the cast and crew of Mayans being made public. THR published the entire letter.
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“Dear Team Mayans, Apparently, Disney HR and Business Affairs has conducted an investigation into the unacceptable conditions that have been created on the set of Mayans in season 2. As you know, I’ve removed myself quite a bit this season, allowing others to take a bigger role in producing the show,” the letter read. “It appears that philosophy has backfired. It’s been reported by writers, producers, cast and crew that my absence and subsequent behavior when there, has only created confusion, chaos, hostility and is perceived as abandonment. Or at least that’s how Disney has interpreted it. I’m sure it’s true.
“This morning I was fired by Dana Walden and John Landgraf for all the complaints levied against me. Not the way I wanted to end my 18 year relationship with FX. At least being fired for being an abrasive d— is on brand,” he continued. “I deeply apologize if I’ve made people feel less than or unsupported. My intention was literally the opposite. But clearly I’ve not been paying attention. My arrogance and chronic distraction has created wreckage. Just know, I adore this cast and crew.”
Notably, Sutter is still listed as an executive producer on Mayans, as he was technically only fired from his showrunner position.
Later that month, Sutter sat down with Deadline to talk about what had transpired. Eventually, the TV show creator got around to speaking about one Mayans joke in particular that he believes was the trigger for his firing.
“Here’s what I did wrong on the studio network side, the reason why I had to go away. It all started with a joke. And not a very good one. There was a line in the Season 2 premiere. EZ [JD Pardo] and Coco [Richard Cabral] were getting off the bus at the school where the drugs were being processed. There was supposed to be a really gnarly playground out front. Filled with debris, dangerous looking swings, sharp objects, rusty jungle gym, etc. As they exited, Coco sees EZ’s distracted and says: ‘Lighten up Boy Scout,’ and gesturing to the playground, says, ‘We’re going to Disneyland.’ EZ replies: ‘Yeah? Guess this is where Walt buried all the Jews he had killed.’ Coco comments: ‘That’s dark man…’ And exits.”
Sutter went on to say, “Although the joke came out of character and in any other environment, would have been typical of my brand of dark humor, I’m not an idiot. I knew it would ring some bells. Whether real or imagined, I was already experiencing the tightening of the noose. It was manifesting in production issues, creating more hurdles, etc. I’ve learned over the years through trial and error – a lot of error – how to push back to protect story from corporate conformity.”
Following Sutter’s firing, Mayans M.C. was renewed for Season 3.
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