Olivia Munn says a director from HBO's The Newsroom tried to sabotage her career after on-set disputes—calling her 'combative' to studio execs
Actress Olivia Munn has publicly alleged that an unnamed director from HBO’s The Newsroom attempted to derail her career after professional disagreements on set. The revelation came during an appearance on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, where Munn detailed the lengths this director went to in order to undermine her reputation within the film industry.
Olivia Munn reveals an unnamed HBO director tried to ruin her career after clashing on The Newsroom, calling her “combative” to studio execs.
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According to Munn, tensions began during the filming of a romantic storyline involving her character and that of co-star Thomas Sadoski. The director, whose identity Munn chose not to reveal, allegedly pressured her to portray emotional vulnerability in ways that contradicted her character’s professional focus. She resisted these directorial choices, advocating for more character-driven realism.
“He kept trying to force me to carry the storyline only on my side,” Munn explained. “He’d say, ‘Can you smile at him?’ or ‘Can you stop and snuggle up?’ even in scenes where it didn’t make sense.”
Later, Munn learned from her team that this same director had contacted a studio and described her as “really combative” and habitually late, despite her living only minutes from the set and having no record of tardiness. The timing of this false report was no coincidence. Munn was in final talks for a leading role in a major film when the smear campaign reached the studio.
“My manager called and said, ‘You’re going to get the role, but someone at the studio heard you were difficult on The Newsroom set,’” Munn recounted. “I knew exactly who it was. He tried to sabotage me simply because we didn’t see eye to eye on how to play a scene.”
Despite the attempt to tarnish her reputation, Munn ultimately secured the role in question. Yet, she described the experience as a sobering reminder of the power dynamics that continue to plague women in Hollywood.
Over the years, Munn has gained recognition not only for her acting but for speaking out against industry misconduct. In 2017, she accused director Brett Ratner of sexual harassment, telling The Los Angeles Times he had masturbated in front of her during a visit to his trailer on the set of After the Sunset. A year later, Munn exposed 20th Century Fox for casting a registered sex offender—hired by director Shane Black—in 2018’s Predator, which resulted in public backlash and a rare studio apology.
Munn has consistently used her platform to highlight systemic issues within the entertainment industry. On the Reclaiming podcast earlier this year, she revealed that she once declined a multi-million-dollar offer to sign a non-disclosure agreement following what she called a “traumatic” incident on a movie set.
