Armie Hammer came under fire last month over what initially appeared to be a cheating scandal featuring a “cannibal” roleplay fetish.
The jokes quickly stopped when Armie’s ex accused him of toxicity, manipulation, and abuse.
Now, Armie’s ex-wife of 10 years is speaking out after weeks of public silence.
She is beyond heartbroken over what she has heard.
Late on Monday, she took to social media to break her silence.
“For weeks, I’ve been trying to process everything that has transpired.” Elizabeth began her Instagram message.
She expressed: “I am shocked, heartbroken, and devastated.”
“Heartbreak aside,” Elizabeth emphasized, “I am listening.”
“And,” she continued, she “will continue to listen.”
Elizabeth made it clear that she intends to listen “and educate myself on these delicate matters.”
“I didn’t realize how much I didn’t know,” Elizabeth confessed.
“I support any victim of assault or abuse,” she declared.
“And,” Elizabeth continued, she can only “urge anyone who has experienced this pain to seek the help she or he needs to heal.”
“At this time, I will not be commenting further on this matter,” Elizabeth announced.
“My sole focus and attention,” she explained, “will continue to be on our children.”
Additionally, Elizabeth detailed, she will continue to focus “on my work and on healing during this incredibly difficult time.”
“Thank you for all of the love and support,” Elizabeth expressed to friends, family, friends, and followers.
“And,” she wrote, “thank you in advance for your continued kindness, respect, and consideration for our children and me.”
Elizabeth concluded: “as we find ways to move forward.”
Very conspicuously, Elizabeth did not specifically address that she was discussing reports about her ex-husband.
In fact, she did not name Armie or any of his accusers who have come forward at all.
Nonetheless, everyone caught her meaning.
There is a tendency within our culture to assume that “the wife” must have known. This is almost always unfair.
Whether discussing one of the disgusting men named in the MeToo movement or a serial killer, sometimes those sympathetic to victims will attack the spouse.
It is so important to remember that spouses often fit one of two categories — fellow victims, or total innocence. In this case, the latter.
In fact, Armie himself spoke in an interview about a decade ago about how some of his BDSM kinks, such as hair-pulling, were separate from his marital life.
He would later go on to claim that he had been drunk during that all-too-revealing interview.
That said, it is so important to emphasize that Armie is not — generally speaking — under attack for roleplay fantasies or kinks.
“Cannibalism” as mentioned in the alleged DMs from Armie (remember, they have not been verified) may have made headlines.
But on their own, the direct messages could have just been a horrible invasion of privacy.
We’re all adults who can hopefully tell the difference between someone’s roleplay fantasy (and most of Armie’s messages were fairly vanilla anyway) and actual intentions to commit a violent crime.
However, emotional abuse and gaslighting are another matter altogether.
What is worse is that one of Armie’s exes accused him of carving his initials into her skin. That is beyond an escalation.
BDSM must always be safe, sane, and consensual. What Armie’s accusers have described is anything but. Our hearts go out to all survivors of unthinkable abuse.