On paper, Armie Hammer possesses all of the necessary tools to be a major movie star, but he’s never quite managed to crack the A-list. The 34 year-old is tall, handsome, and has proven himself to be a more than capable dramatic talent in the likes of Nocturnal Animals and Call Me by Your Name, while he gave suitably suave and charismatic performances in blockbusters The Lone Ranger and The Man From U.N.C.L.E., even though they both bombed at the box office.
However, the actor has found himself at the center of an online firestorm recently after being faced with accusations that he’s a cannibal. Yes, you read that correctly. A string of graphic and disturbing messages were leaked online recently by a social media user, who claimed they came directly from Hammer, in which he’s alleged to have made a series of deeply troubling statements.
While the veracity of his purported love for human flesh has yet to be determined, the actor has nonetheless dropped out of upcoming action comedy Shotgun Wedding, where he was set to co-star with Jennifer Lopez having replaced Ryan Reynolds in the lead role (although the Deadpool star remains attached as a producer). Hammer released a statement confirming he’d departed the project, while also blasting the spate of rumors against him.
“I’m not responding to these bullsh*t claims but in light of the vicious and spurious online attacks against me, I cannot in good conscience now leave my children for four months to shoot a film in the Dominican Republic. Lionsgate is supporting me in this and I’m grateful to them for that.”
This is certainly one of the more bizarre Hollywood stories in recent memory, and last week the idea of the world waiting to find out with bated breath whether or not Armie Hammer is a cannibal would have sounded completely insane. Luckily, though, 2020 numbed many of us to these sorts of wild developments, but whether he eats people or not, Shotgun Wedding is still looking for a new leading man.