Thomas Gibson Hires A Top Notch Lawyer, Likely To Fight Back In Court Following His Dismissal From ‘Criminal Minds’
Thomas Gibson is likely to fight back legally following his dismissal on Friday from the CBS TV drama series Criminal Minds for allegedly hurting a writer-producer on the set over a disagreement on an episode that he was directing.
Hired as Gibson’s legal counsel is Los Angeles-based accomplished trial attorney Louis “Skip” Miller who, according to his law firm’s official website (which he shares with another celebrity lawyer, Mark Barondess), “has been selected among ‘The Best of the Bar‘ by the Los Angeles Business Journal and among the “Top 100 – California’s Leading Lawyers” by the Los Angeles Daily Journal.”
The Hollywood Reporter says the following.
“Skip Miller, a prominent litigator with experience in entertainment industry disputes, confirmed… that he and partner Sasha Frid have begun representing Gibson and are evaluating whether to pursue legal claims. Miller, Frid and other attorneys at the Miller Barondess firm are set to meet with their client early next week.”
Following the incident, Williams filed a formal complaint with the studio’s human resources representatives, who after an extensive interview, decided to launch an initial investigation.
Playing a key role in the investigation was Howard Davine, ABC Studios executive vice-president, who also happened to be the show’s lead producer.
The members of the investigating body initially penalized Thomas Gibson with a rather light two-episode suspension but later decided on Friday to dismiss the actor for good from Criminal Minds.
While none of ABC Studios’ and CBS Television Studios’ officials were heard to comment on the result of the investigation, the language of the two studios’ official joint statement about Gibson’s dismissal was straight to the point, lacking the usual Hollywood sugarcoating in handling cases within the industry, as The Hollywood Reporter noted, saying simply that Gibson “has been dismissed from Criminal Minds.”
“Creative details for how the character’s exit will be addressed in the show will be announced at a later date,” the joint statement added.
On the same day, Gibson issued his response to his dismissal, as quoted by the CBS-owned TV Guide.
“I love Criminal Minds and have put my heart and soul into it for the last 12 years. I had hoped to see it through to the end, but that won’t be possible now. I would just like to say thank you to the writers, producers, actors, our amazing crew, and, most importantly, the best fans that a show could ever hope to have.”
“Lot of birdies chirping out there; the gossip is real,” Wood said in the video, which, The Hollywood Reporter said, was quickly deleted.
“I hear it. I see it. I’m sure a lot of you do, too, so I’ll just say this: I believe in karma. Good things happen to good people. Honest people. Hard-working people. Humble people. People who believe in basic goodness. People who believe in themselves. People who believe in others. Good things will happen to you; it’s not always easy; but you gotta grind it out and you gotta believe in you. Treat people how you expect them to treat you. Celebrate yourself; celebrate your blessings — as you should. But just know that you’re not better than anybody. We all have our own gifts, so unwrap them bad boys and show ’em off. But then appreciate other people’s gifts. Church is over.”
Having played the role of Criminal Minds‘ lead character of FBI special agent Aaron Hotchner since its debut in 2005, Thomas Gibson was already penalized for a similar offense, for which he was required to attend anger management classes for pushing another producer a few years ago.
[Photo by Imeh Akpanudosen/Getty Images]
