Craig Gore, a writer whose credits include “S.W.A.T.” and “Chicago P.D.,” has been fired from Dick Wolf’s upcoming “Law & Order” spinoff series after controversial Facebook posts about looters and the recent curfew put in place across Los Angeles.
“I will not tolerate this conduct, especially during our hour of national grief. I am terminating Craig Gore immediately,” Dick Wolf said in a statement to Variety.
Photos on social media show Gore holding a weapon with the caption “Curfew…” In another comment, Gore threatened to “light motherf—ers up who are trying to f— with my property,” in reference to protests that took place in Los Angeles on Monday.
Gore’s posts, which incited a strong reaction on social media, come amid calls for criminal justice reform after George Floyd was killed by a police officer in Minnesota. His posts gained traction on social media after Drew Janda, who worked on the OWN series “Greenleaf” and HBO shows “Big Little Lies” and “Barry,” brought attention to Gore’s remarks.
Variety has also learned from sources that Paradigm, which represented Gore, has now cut ties with the writer and producer.
“Craig Gore is no longer a Paradigm client. We condemn his post in the strongest possible terms,” said a spokesperson for the agency.
Gore previously listed himself as a “co-executive producer on ‘Law & Order: Organized Crime'” — the new Chris Meloni series in the works at NBC — on his Facebook profile. However, Meloni replied to Janda’s tweet saying that he has “no idea who this person is or what they do.” Meloni clarified that the showrunner on the “Law & Order: SVU” spinoff is Matt Olmstead, not Gore, adding that he has “gotten no word on any hirings.”
On the same day as Gore’s posts, the “S.W.A.T.” writers’ room Twitter account posted a statement calling for “law enforcement to de-escalate conflicts, not exacerbate them.” Aaron Rahsaan Thomas, one of the show’s executive producers, said that he is “frustrated, angry, but determined to do better. Onscreen and off.”
Other than “S.W.A.T.” and “Chicago P.D.,” Gore recently had a “DEA” series in development at Fox. However, according to sources the network passed on the project, which had been given a script plus penalty commitment, earlier this year.