Ron Meyer sought the assistance of the FBI soon after being threatened with the exposure of his affair with actress Charlotte Kirk, two sources familiar with the matter told Variety.
Meyer stepped down as vice chairman of NBCUniversal on Tuesday after informing the company of the affair and of the existence of a confidential settlement. In a statement, Meyer said that he had been forced into making the disclosure after other parties had “continuously attempted to extort me into paying them money.”
It is not clear whether the FBI is investigating the case. The FBI declined to comment, as did Meyer.
Meyer, 75, had a brief relationship with Kirk, who is now 28, about eight years ago.
Kirk also had an affair with Kevin Tsujihara, the former CEO of Warner Bros., in 2013 and 2014. The revelation of that affair, and of Tsujihara’s efforts to procure auditions for her, also cost Tsujihara his job.
In that case, the Hollywood Reporter published text messages between Kirk and producer Brett Ratner, who was acting as a go-between. In one of the messages, Ratner accused Kirk of trying to extort Tsujihara by threatening to go to a lawyer after she did not get promised acting jobs.
“Brett you’re an idiot I’m not extorting anyone,” she wrote at the time.
Kirk stars in “The Reckoning,” a horror film she co-wrote with director Neil Marshall, which is due to debut at the Fantasia International Film Festival on Thursday. The festival, based in Montreal, is being held virtually this year.
Marshall and Kirk, both British natives, share a residential address in Los Angeles, according to a corporate filing.