ARMIE HAMMER Life After Scandal

Five years after shocking allegations upended his career, Armie Hammer is returning to the big screen. Us examines how the actor rebuilt his life and why not everyone believes he's earned a second act

- JAIME HARKIN

Armie Hammer was once poised to be one of Hollywood's biggest stars. Then, in early 2021, multiple women accused him of sexual and emotional abuse, coercion and violence. The details of the claims were shocking and disturbing: there were screenshots of alleged DMs from Hammer discussing rape and cannibalistic fantasies, and women reported being groomed and branded by him. Hammer — who had divorced his wife of 10 years, Elizabeth Chambers, the previous July — denied the accusations, but the damage was done. He was fired from several high-profile projects and dropped by his talent agency. He retreated to the Cayman Islands and spent time in a rehab facility for drug, alcohol and sex issues.

His Fall From Grace

He went from in-demand actor to canceled star in just a few years

January 2018

After breakout roles in The Social Network and The Lone Ranger, Hammer earned rave reviews and a Golden Globe nomination for his work in the 2017 hit indie Call Me by Your Name, opposite Timothée Chalamet.

July 2020

Chambers filed for divorce amid cheating rumors. “The life that we had planned for years basically shattered,” she said in 2024. “That was a really painful period of time.”

January 2021

Posting under an anonymous Instagram account called House of Effie, a woman later identified as Effie Angelova shared DMs of Hammer allegedly writing, “I am 100% a cannibal” and “I want to eat you.”

A slew of accusations followed from app developer Courtney Vucekovich (above, left) and Armie’s ex, model Paige Lorenze (above, right). Lorenze claims Hammer exposed her to BDSM and carved the letter “A” into her skin.

Hammer released a statement in which he called the “bulls**t claims” of abuse false and noted that he wouldn’t be responding to the “vicious and spurious online attacks” against him. (He also dropped out of Shotgun Wedding with Jennifer Lopez.)