Tambor Speaks Out for First Time Since Transparent Scandal

Actor Jeffrey Tambor has spoken out for the first time since he was accused of sexual harassment by two transgender women on the set of Emmy-winning Amazon series Transparent. In the exhaustive story in the Hollywood Reporter, the actor defends himself against accusations from his former personal assistant, Van Barnes, and former co-star, Trace Lysette, while admitting he wasn't always a joy to be around. "I did raise my voice at times, I was moody at times, there were times when I was tactless. But as for the other stuff, absolutely not," he said. The "other stuff" is presumably Barnes' allegations of sexual propositions and unwanted touching and similar claims by Lysette.

He says anxiety over his role as a transgender woman had a lot to do with tension on the set. "I drove myself and my castmates crazy. Lines got blurred," he says. "I was scared, because I was a cisgender male playing Maura Pfefferman. And my whole thing was, 'Am I doing it right? Am I doing it right? Am I doing it right?' To the point that I worried myself to death." Tambor was officially fired from the show Feb. 15, but will return to screens May 29 with the premiere of Arrested Development season 5. Read his lengthy THR interview here. (More Jeffrey Tambor stories.)