Three former crewmembers on the ABC medical series “Doctor Odyssey” are suing 20th Century and its parent company Disney for allegedly enabling an “unchecked campaign of sexual harassment for months” on the set of the series.
In the suit, filed Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court, plaintiffs Caroline Mack, Alicia Haverland and Ava Steinbrenner claim that Tyler Patton, the assistant prop master on “Doctor Odyssey,” would subject the three to “sexual jokes, innuendos, comments, sexual gestures and images” as well as “unwanted touching,” such as “openly grabbing a visiting female employee’s buttocks.”
In one account contained in the suit, Patton allegedly sent prop department employees a story appearing to reference news that President Biden had dropped out of the 2024 election. But the link redirected to a picture of a naked male with an erect penis. Other comments allegedly made by Patton include calling one of the plaintiffs a “chick” and saying “come over here and open your mouth, here’s the worm.”
The lead prop master on “Doctor Odyssey” was Tammie Patton, Tyler’s wife. The suit claims that Tammie and Disney hired Tyler with “knowledge that prior allegations of sexual harassment had been lodged” against him. Patton was previously named in a 2010 lawsuit against Universal Network Television, which claimed advanced sexual harassment and retaliation allegations on the set of “House.” In that complaint, ex-employee Carl Jones alleged that Patton groped his genitals and made sexual propositions to female co-workers.
The “Doctor Odyssey” suit also claims that Patton’s harassment would occur “daily and frequently in the presence of management.” During one confrontation, Patton allegedly exclaimed, “If I wasn’t fucking the boss, I’d be fired.”
Patton was terminated after plaintiffs reported his behavior to human resources, according to the complaint. Shortly after, Tammie Patton allegedly “began to engage in retaliatory behavior,” including threatening their employment. The entire props department was later laid off, though Disney “then almost immediately hired a whole new set of employees,” the suit states.
The suit argues that “Defendants wiped the Prop Department’s slate clean to avoid having to deal with any remaining 27 employee-relations issues tied to Tyler Patton’s and Tammie Patton’s misconduct.” The plaintiffs also claim that they have been “blacklisted” by Disney “in retaliation for bringing forward their good-faith complaints.”
Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Doctor Odyssey” has not yet been renewed for a second season. It is now the only scripted series at ABC with an undetermined future.
