Rapper T.I. will not be returning for the third installment of Marvel’s “Ant-Man” franchise, Variety has confirmed.
The performer, whose off-stage name is Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., previously played a supporting role in a comedic crew of men assisting Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang, the titular hero of the past two films.
Insiders close to the Disney project said T.I. was never slated to return, despite the implication that recent and grave allegations against him had to do with the decision.
T.I. and his wife, Tiny Harris, are currently facing allegations of sexual abuse and drugging by multiple women. Representatives for T.I. did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.
In a press conference on Monday, attorney Tyrone A. Blackburn detailed the allegations brought by six anonymous women claiming that T.I. and Tiny had abused them, with some describing instances of drugging, kidnapping and rape. Blackburn has sent letters to the attorney generals of California and Georgia, where the events occurred, asking them to investigate the claims.
T.I. and Tiny denied the allegations in a statement through their lawyer, Steve Sadow.
