Hilary Swank Dropped by PR Firm Over Chechnya Incident

Hilary Swank hasn’t had the best few weeks.

Last month, she was widely criticised by human rights groups after she made a paid appearance at the birthday party of Chechen president Ramzan Kadyrov. The 37-year-old actress apologized almost immediately and promised to donate her fee to charity, but the pressure was not relieved. Eventually, Swank fired Jason Weinberg, her manager of eight years, along with two of his associates who had also done work for her.

However, even these sacrificial lambs were not enough. Yesterday, Swank herself got fired by her public relations firm, 42West. Entertainment Weekly reports how it was less Swank’s appearance in Chechnya that led to her being dropped, but more a disagreement of how to deal with the fallout from the event.

Swank has since said she did not have full knowledge of what the gig in Chechnya involved. As she stated in her apology:

“I deeply regret attending this event, which has thrown into question my long and deeply-held commitment to the protection of human rights. I would never intentionally do anything that raised doubts about such commitment. I will continue to donate my time and my financial resources not only to the charities with which I am currently affiliated, but also those dedicated to the preservation of human rights. If I had a full understanding of what this event was apparently intended to be, I would never have gone.”

Both 42West and Swank herself have yet to comment on any split. What do you think – is this just a case of simple naivety on Swank’s part?