Chris D’Elia of ‘You’: Did he address the harassment allegations?

Last Friday, shamed actor & comedian Chris D’Elia, who’s likely best known for his work on the Netflix series You, posted a ten-minute video on YouTube in which he finally addressed the sexual misconduct allegations made against him last Summer.

The You star became a trending name last June, which saw Chris D’Elia under fire as multiple women reported the sexually inappropriate behaviors experienced at the hands of the comedian. Even more disturbing is the fact that some of the women were legally underage; some as young as sixteen years old. 

The reports of Chris D’Elia soliciting nude photos of these women, as well as sending them inappropriate text messages ultimately led to the You star being dropped by his talent agency CAA. Now, after only offering a brief statement last June, we finally have an apology from Chris D’Elia . . . but how sincere is it? Let’s take a closer look at the situation. 

Chris D’Elia’s rising star 

Forty year old Chris D’Elia is the son of famous TV producer & director, Bill D’Elia but let’s not get into the topic of nepotism. Chris D’Elia, who was born & raised in New Jersey until his family moved to Los Angeles at the age of twelve, started acting during his high school years, making current guest spots on the TV show Chicago Hope. 

However, after dropping out of New York University, D’Elia kicked off his career as a stand-up comedian in 2006, quoting that he views himself as a “comedian who acts”. Chris D’Elia began making runs at popular TV comedy shows like Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, as well as Showtime’s Live Nude Comedy. 

Luckily for D’Elia, he finally landed his big break on the NBC sitcom Whitney, which saw him co-star alongside fellow stand-up comedian Whitney Cummings.  

D’Elia on top of the world

Even when NBC canceled Whitney after two seasons, D’Elia managed to keep his career momentum going, getting over two-million subscribers on the social media site Vine as well as landing multiple comedy specials on both Comedy Central & Netflix. 

Chris D’Elia also managed to land a lead role on NBC’s 2014 sitcom Undateable. However, D’Elia’s biggest break to date was snagging a recurring role on the hit Netflix series You as Joshua “Henderson” Bunter. The character is a Los Angeles-based stand-up comedian who also just so happens to be a nasty creep. Many critics of Chris D’Elia love pointing out the obvious parallels between himself and his You character. 

Allegations

In June 2020, Chris D’Elia faced multiple allegations of sexual assault, claiming that the actor & comedian was into inappropriate grooming, as well as soliciting nude photos of underage girls. 

These allegations against Chris D’Elia had many repercussions, including D’Elia being dropped from his talent agency and getting replaced for multiple roles & events he had booked prior. It even forced Comedy Central to pull an episode of Workaholics which featured D’Elia in a guest role, playing a child predator. 

Chris D’Elia apologies

While Chris D’Elia only offered a brief statement during the initial allegations last June, the comedian & actor has seemed to have finally found his wording as he recently released a ten-minute apology on his YouTube page. 

“I have a chance to apologize here, to the people who got caught up in that s%!+,” D’Elia said. “The lies that I would tell my fiancé, my friends . . . I’m sorry.”

In the video, D’Elia also admits to allowing “sex” to control his life, as well as addressing that he had a “life-controlling problem” that has tarnished many relationships in his life. He now claims to have a new focus on not only getting better but to also be a stronger role model for his son. 

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What do you make of Chris D’Elia’s apology? Did you even enjoy his stand-up work or his acting roles? How should this situation be handled by D’Elia moving forward? Comment below and let us know your thoughts.