Ryan Seacrest's Former Stylists Accuses Host of Sexual Abuse

On Monday, Variety released a report alleging that Ryan Seacrest had acted inappropriately and sexually harassed his E! stylist, Suzie Hardy. In a letter from November that Hardy addressed to NBCUniversal, she outlined that Seacrest had ground his erect penis against her, groped at her vagina, and had slapped her buttocks so hard that it left a visible welt. This abuse lasted from when she started in 2007 until 2013, when, after she reported the incidents to human resources, her employment ended.

Seacrest has denied Hardy's claims.

"I didn't know how to deal with it," Hardy said in an interview with Variety. "I really didn't. I was battling finally being in a decent financial position to breathe and be a mom, that I didn't have to be freaking out all the time, and then dealing with this infantile celebrity person who was testing me on every level and manipulating me and knew that I was in a vulnerable position."

Related | 94% of Women in Hollywood Have Experienced Sexual Misconduct

E! launched an investigation into Hardy's allegations and said there was "insufficient evidence to support the claims against Seacrest."

"Total exasperation was my definite feeling when I heard about it," Hardy said to Variety. "I felt like by the third interview, it was obvious the investigator was whitewashing it for Seacrest's side." Hardy said that the third-party investigator did not contact the four witnesses she gave him that would corroborate her story.

Varietydid reach out to a witness, and, according to the magazine, Hardy's claims were confirmed by an unnamed coworker.

"As proud as I am and as strong as a woman as I am, as smart as I am and as much work as I've done with therapists, it really affected me," Hardy said to Variety.