Albert Alarr, a longtime director and producer on the soap opera “Days of Our Lives,” is leaving the series following allegations of misconduct brought against him.
Alarr’s departure was confirmed by “Days of Our Lives” executive producer Ken Corday in a statement obtained by Deadline and Variety.
“Effective immediately, Janet Drucker will be elevated to co-executive producer of ‘Days of Our Lives,’ replacing Albert Alarr, who will be exiting his role,” Corday wrote in a memo to the show’s cast and crew, per the outlets. “Moving forward, we will be implementing additional HR protocols, including an increased HR presence as well as channels for reporting any concerns. It is imperative that we have a safe and inclusive workplace environment.”
Allegations of a toxic workplace environment and misconduct by Alarr — ranging from inappropriate comments and touching to groping and forceful kissing — emerged after Sony Pictures Television launched a nine-week investigation prompted by a gender disparity complaint that female employees had been disproportionately impacted by recent layoffs on the long-running soap opera, Deadline exclusively reported in July.
In a statement to Deadline and People magazine, Alarr, who has served as the show’s director since 2003 and co-executive producer since 2011, said, “It is hard to overstate how heartbreaking I find this situation.”
“Many of the claims recently referenced in the media are simply false. Others have been taken so out of context or are so twisted that they are unrecognizable from the truth,” Alarr told the outlets. “Every day, I worked with hundreds of people, the overwhelming majority of whom would disagree with recent mischaracterizations of me. I have been in this industry for decades, and not a single complaint has ever been made against me until now.”
Following the investigation’s launch, a petition was started by “Days of Ours Lives” cast members requesting Alarr’s removal from the show, Deadline previously reported. More than 25 cast members signed the petition.
“These allegations were already examined in a detailed and entirely independent investigation that lasted for two months,” Alarr continued. “Dozens of individuals cooperated and every claim was thoroughly looked into. At the end of that process, the decision was made that I should continue in my role as co-executive producer. Now, with no new facts presented, the studios have reversed course and caved to a cynical pressure campaign to force me out of my job.”
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Farah Galfond, who starred as Mimi Lockhart on the show from 1999 to 2007, reflected on her experience working with Alarr in a social media post Wednesday.
“I had the particular misfortune of having Alarr direct my first ever ‘love’ scene when I was 19,” Galfond wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “I was extremely modest and freaked out to be standing in my underwear in front of dozens of crew…and did Albert do or say one little thing to make me feel remotely at ease? Absolutely not. He pushed and pushed and pushed and pushed me on a particular issue, and was annoyed when I stood my ground.”
Galfond added that she was “sorry to my former coworkers who’ve been dealing with this relentlessly for decades now.”
“20 years later and I still feel sad about that day yet happy I set a boundary,” Galfond wrote. “But man would it have been nice to have a woman direct that scene and make sure I felt protected instead of exposed.”
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