Armie Hammer is breaking his silence on the horrific abuse allegations that seemingly tanked his reputation at the height of his career.
In January 2021, several women accused the Call Me By Your Name actor of physically, sexually and verbally abusing them, with some accusations going so far as to imply Hammer had cannibalism fantasies.
Following the immediate public backlash and law enforcement investigation, Hammer jetted off to the Cayman Islands to escape the scrutiny — but according to the 36-year-old, he couldn't escape his own dark thoughts.
"I just walked out into the ocean and swam out as far as I could and hoped that either I drowned, or was hit by a boat, or eaten by a shark," Hammer admitted in a recent interview. "Then I realized that my kids were still on shore, and that I couldn’t do that to my kids."
The father-of-two — who shares 8-year-old daughter Harper and 6-year-old son Ford with ex-wife Elizabeth Chambers — has had the last few years to consider the accusations against him and weigh them against his behavior. He revealed he did believe there was an "imbalance" in the relationships he chose to have with women in their mid-20s, while he was still married to Chambers.
"I was a successful actor at the time. They could have been happy to just be with me and would have said yes to things that maybe they wouldn’t have said yes to on their own," he continued. "That’s an imbalance of power in the situation."
Hammer said he was "here to own his mistakes" and "take accountability for the fact that I was an a**hole" and that he "used people" to make him feel better for the things that had happened in his past.
And according to theDeath on the Nile actor, a formative memory that went on to alter his behavior was being sexually abused by a youth pastor when he was 13-years-old. Noting that it introduced sexuality into his young life "in a scary way where I had no control," he said that made him want to have "control in the situation" in future sexual experiences
"I’m now a healthier, happier, more balanced person. I’m able to be there for my kids in a way I never was," he explained of the progress he's made over the past two years. "I’m truly grateful for my life and my recovery and everything. I would not go back and undo everything that’s happened to me."
Hammer spoke with AirMail about the allegations, his past and his life going forward.
