Seacrest did not respond to the stylist's claims on Tuesday's "Live with Kelly and Ryan."
It was business as usual for Ryan Seacrest on Tuesday’s Live With Kelly & Ryan as he remained silent on sexual misconduct allegations brought against him by his former stylist.
Suzie Hardy, who was hired as Seacrest’s stylist on E! News in 2007, said she was subjected to years of unwanted sexual aggression by Seacrest in a November letter sent by her attorney to the media mogul, cable channel and its parent company, NBCUniversal.
The letter was exclusively obtained by Variety, which spoke to Hardy about her claims for an article published Monday.
“As proud as I am and as strong as a woman as I am, as smart as I am and as much work as I’ve done with therapists, it really affected me,” she told Variety.
Hardy said the instances of what she described as harassment and assault ended in 2013 when she said she was terminated two weeks after the human resources department at E! News asked her about the nature of her relationship with Seacrest.
“I was very proud to say, ‘No, I don’t [have a physical relationship with Seacrest,'" Hardy told Variety. "I never touched him, I never kissed him, I never f***ed him, nothing. But I said, ‘But he touched me’... I was in there for hours. I told them everything."
E! News said it found insufficient evidence to support Hardy’s allegations.
Seacrest has repeatedly denied Hardy’s claims and addressed the allegations in a February guest column for The Hollywood Reporter.
“To have my workplace conduct questioned was gut-wrenching. I’ve always aimed to treat all of my colleagues with honesty, respect, kindness and compassion,” Seacrest wrote.
He made no mention of the Variety article on Tuesday’s episode of Live With Kelly & Ryan.
The daytime talk show co-host walked straight to his anchor chair while holding hands with Kelly Ripa, forgoing his usual entrance of greeting guests with high fives.
Instead of addressing the controversy, Kelly and Ryan spoke about whitening their teeth for most of the opening segment.
He attempted to hug guest Christine Baranski, who stars on CBS’s The Good Fight, but Baranski instead reached for Seacrest’s hand.
The new details surrounding the allegations come as Seacrest prepares to host E! News’ coverage of the Oscars at the Dolby Theater Sunday, leaving some wondering whether he'll be shunned by stars supporting the "Me Too" and "Time’s Up" movements.
“This is the time to step aside and let someone of equal talent that is beyond reproach to be in charge,” Bellamy Young said on the red carpet at Monday’s world premiere of A Wrinkle in Time.
“I know it feels like the rules have changed, so I’m sure people who have been in dominant positions are taken by surprise,” she said.
“Now that someone is asking, ‘Do you consent,’ and we get to say, 'No,' people have to accept our no and step aside."
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