Who is Brian Foster and what has he been accused of?

Seven women have filed a lawsuit against Brian W. Foster for various allegations of abuse.

The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday (October 3) in Los Angeles, with one of the accusers being Foster’s ex-girlfriend and The Last Of Us actor Ashley Johnson.

Johnson was previously granted a temporary restraining order against Foster in May this year, after the couple broke up on March 25, 2023. In the order, Johnson claimed she feared for her life following the split, and that her family had endured abuse and “many acts of terror” by Foster over the years.

As reported by RadarOnline, the request for an extended restraining order was dismissed by a judge in September. Foster denied all the claims.

Who is Brian W. Foster?

Brian W. Foster is best known as the host and producer of Talks Machina, a weekly talk show which acts as a spin-off to the Dungeons & Dragons web series Critical Role, where a group of professional voice actors livestream a D&D campaign.

Foster also appeared on several other shows at Critical Role Productions, including serving as Dungeon Master on UnDeadwood and appearing in several one-shots.

Let’s all wish @brianwfoster the best as he embarks on some wild new creative endeavors. We have nothing but mad love and support for our Cabbage Lord, and want to thank him for his creativity and contributions to CR over the years.

— Critical Role (@CriticalRole) August 16, 2021

After hosting Talks Machina since 2016, Foster departed the company in 2021. In a post on Twitter at the time (since deleted), Foster wrote: “I’ve had the absolute best time of my life making shows and playing games and travelling the world with my best friends.

“I’m grateful for their support and encouragement as I chase my own dreams. I’m excited to just be a Critter again.”

What has Brian W. Foster been accused of?

In the lawsuit filed in October (via Comicbook.com), Foster has been accused of domestic violence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, sexual battery and assault, and stalking.

The complaint, which reiterates several incidents referred to in Ashley Johnson’s original restraining order, also alleges that Foster made “wildly inappropriate and unwanted sexual comments” to Johnson’s sister while “fueled by drugs and alcohol”.

The lawsuit also claims Foster groped a Critical Role employee during a live event in 2020. Another plaintiff, meanwhile, alleges that Foster groped her and “forcibly attempted to stick his hands down her pants” while sitting in the audience of another event in Austin in November 2019.

Another Critical Role employee claims Foster demanded explicit photos of her and groped her during a coffee run in 2019, and later attempted to grope her again in 2021.

Critical Role released a statement to ComicBook.com following the lawsuit, which read: “We are aware of the civil complaint that includes disturbing details about the behaviour of one of our ex-employees, Brian W. Foster. While we can’t get into the specifics of the lawsuit, we want to make it clear that we had no knowledge of any of his behaviour.

“It is heartbreaking to us that some of our colleagues went through this and we’re committed to supporting them however we can. We are working with our HR team and our staff directly to ensure our workplace and culture live up to all of our expectations.”

The plaintiffs are seeking compensatory and punitive damages with the lawsuit, along with an injunction requiring Foster not to contact Johnson and her family.

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