Spotlight Turns From Scott Rudin’s Abusive Behavior To 'Hair-Trigger' Temper Of Business Partner Barry Diller
May 18 2021, Published 2:53 p.m. ET
Attention is now turning away from Scott Rudin's abusive work culture to the "hair-trigger" temper of his business partner, Barry Diller.
RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned that the bullying spotlight on the disgraced producer opened up a can of worms for his close friend.
"There’s almost a visceral fear of what Barry might do them," a former employee of Diller tells RadarOnline.com.
Barry Diller
Diller, who is a multi-millionaire former executive at Fox and Paramount, has been described as "vicious as hell" and his alleged temper outbursts have reduced his employees to tears.
We're told he's made staffer's jobs "unbearable" with many ex-employees labeling themselves "lucky survivors."
A former assistant detailed to RadarOnline.com the alleged mental abuse he faced at the hands of Diller, saying that, like Rudin, his behavior towards staff was fell drastically short of acceptable.
"Go out and find all of Barry Diller’s ex-assistants. I’m one of them," our source revealed. "He was all this and more. This behavior is more common in that industry, and as a 25-year-old hoping to start a career in it, he destroyed my spirit.
The insider called Diller "one of MANY awful excuses for human beings in Hollywood," and teased, "Stories? I’ve got hundreds.”
As RadarOnline.com exclusively reported, Broadway producer Scott Rudin stepped down from The Music Man following an explosive exposé from The Hollywood Reporter of former employees claiming abuse.
Their accusations were terrifying, including Rudin allegedly injuring one assistant so badly that they had to go to the hospital.
Like Rudin, Dillard's explosive temper has been an open secret in Hollywood for decades.
In 1999, Fortune Magazine wrote about an incident where Diller, who was then a Chief Executive at Fox, allegedly “hurled a three-quarter-inch videotape” at an employee.
It reportedly was thrown with so much force that it put a hole in the wall.
The following year, the New York Times described Diller as “among the most respected – and feared – figures in the entertainment industry."
In 2012, Business Insider included Diller and Rudin in an article titled, 18 Executives Who Lead By Fear. Harvey Weinstein was also listed as one of those executives.
Another explosive story came from Tampa Bay Times who detailed the alleged terror that Diller instilled in his employees.
"There’s no tolerance for errors; Diller is known to shred employees if his tea isn't properly brewed or red poinsettias show up at Christmas time," the article stated, adding that he has “hair-trigger temper that alternates between fire and ice.”
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The feature also quoted The Barry Diller Story: The Life and Times of America's Greatest Entertainment Mogul author George Mair on Diller’s attitude to his employees.
“There's almost a visceral fear of what Barry might do to them,” he said. “He's vicious as hell to anyone who crosses him. And he uses his power for personal vendettas. If he sees you in his gunsights, he'll pull the trigger.”
"Mair… interviewed a secretary of Diller's at Paramount, who said her boss would go into an uncontrollable rage if the papers on his desk weren't precisely arranged, his tea perfectly brewed and the cups of cigarettes around the office not adequately replenished," the feature continued.
“She was bitter about her treatment," Mair said. "And she was disgusted with herself for needing the money and putting up with it."
Perhaps the most extraordinary allegations were found in a 2001 Time magazine article where Diller quoted a studio executive who said, “People who have worked for Barry and then escaped have a secret handshake. They consider themselves lucky survivors, like the Schindler Jews.”
As the fallout from the Scott Rudin abuse claims continues, it seems this may be the beginning of more accusations of bullying and abusive behavior by Hollywood’s so-called “power producers."
