‘The Equalizer’ Fires Chris Noth After Sexual Assault Allegations Surface

Chris Noth has been fired from the CBS action-drama series The Equalizer, following the surfacing of multiple sexual assault allegations against the star. According to The Wrap, Universal Television and CBS issued a very brief joint statement which read, “Chris Noth will no longer film additional episodes of The Equalizer, effective immediately.” Noth played ex–CIA director William Bishop on The Equalizer.

On Thursday, The Hollywood Reporter published a detailed report of accusations against Noth, brought forward by two women. The women claim that Noth raped them, with one alleged incident taking place in 2004 and the other happening in 2015. THR reached out to Noth for a statement, and he did reply. “The accusations against me made by individuals I met years, even decades, ago are categorically false. 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,” Noth stated. “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.”

Additionally, actress Zoe Lister-Jones later came forward to detail her own allegations against Noth. Jones took to Instagram to accuse Noth of “sexually inappropriate” behavior on the set of Law & Order, during the filming of an episode she appeared in. “Last week my friend asked me how I felt about Mr. Big’s death on And Just Like That…, and I said, honestly, I felt relieved,” Lister-Jones began her post.

“He asked why and I told him it was because I couldn’t separate the actor from the man, and the man is a sexual predator,” she went on to write. “My friend was alarmed at my word choice. And to be honest so was I. I hadn’t thought of this man for so many years, and yet there was a virility to my language that came from somewhere deep and buried.” Lister-Jones, 39, then shared that she worked at a nightclub owned by Noth, when she was in her twenties, and alleged that she witnessed Noth being “sexually inappropriate” with a co-worker.

Lister-Jones added that the “same year” she worked for Noth’s club, she also appeared alongside him in an episode of Law & Order. “During my interrogation scene he had a 22 oz. of beer under the table that he would drink in between takes,” she claimed. “In one take he got close to me, sniffed my neck, and whispered, ‘You smell good.’ I didn’t say anything. My friend at the club never said anything. It’s so rare that we do.” 

PEOPLE reached out to Noth’s representatives for comment, but they declined to comment on Lister-Jones’ allegations. However, the outlet did receive a comment from an unnamed source regarding the claims. “To allege Chris was drunk on the set of Law & Order is also entirely false,” the source stated.