Chris Noth Admits He ‘Strayed’ On His Wife, But Denies Sexual Assault Allegations That Led to ‘Equalizer’ Firing
Over a year since the ‘Sex and the City’ alum was accused of sexual assault, he admitted that he ‘strayed’ on his wife during a new Aug. 7 interview.
Accusations of sexual assault against Chris Noth, 68, came to light in Dec. 2021, however, the Sex and The City alum is continuing to deny them. During an Aug. 7 interview with USA Today, the actor claimed that his only indiscretion was stepping out of his marriage. “I strayed on my wife [Tara Wilson], and it’s devastating to her and not a very pretty picture,” he told the outlet. “What it isn’t is a crime.” Tara and the 68-year-old have been married since 2012 and share two sons Orion Christopher (b. 2008) and Keats (b. 2020).
The sexual assault allegations surfaced on the heels of the And Just Like That premiere of 2021. Since then, although no criminal charges have been filed, Chris has been “shunned” by the entertainment industry, per the above outlet. He reportedly lost a $12 million deal on his tequila brand, was fired from The Equalizer, cut from an advertisement with Peloton, and removed from the And Just Like That season finale. As many know, his character Mr. Big (John Preston), was killed off in season 1 of the Max series.
During the first interview since the allegations broke, Chris told the outlet that, his biggest mistake was cheating on his wife. “You give yourself the same excuses that many men do; it’s just a little side dance, and it’s fun,” he said. “You’re not hurting anybody. No one’s going to know about this, you know, and sex is just enjoyable. And suddenly, a lot of people want to have sex with you. It’s like, ‘Well, I’m not going to get this chance again.'”
The father-of-two seemingly noted that civil lawsuits could potentially be pursued by the alleged victims in the future. “That’s a money train for a lot of people,” Chris told USA Today. He also went on to reiterate that there have been no criminal charges filed against him. “There’s nothing I can say to change anyone’s mind when you have that kind of a tidal wave,” the longtime Hollywood heartthrob shared. “It sounds defensive. I’m not. There’s no criminal court. There’s no criminal trial. There’s nothing for me to get on the stand about and get my story out, get witnesses.”
More so, Chris shared that there have been many rumors online about him since the allegations came to light. “And there’s even more absurd add-ons that are completely ridiculous, that have absolutely no basis in fact,” he said. “And I don’t like talking about it because as soon as I do, you’ll get the Daily Mail or someone grabbing a part of it and doing it, and I don’t want my kids seeing that.” Now, Chris is directing and acting in, Rhinoceros, a theater production taking place in Massachusetts.
The Perfect Man star concluded the interview with expressing that despite the allegations, he will move forward with his creative career. “I’m not going to lay down and just say it’s over. It’s a salacious story, but it’s just not a true one. And I can’t just say ‘Well, OK, that’s it for me’ because of that. I’m an actor. I have other things that I want to do creatively. And I have children to support,” Chris said. “I can’t just rest on my laurels. So yeah, I have enough to let a year drift, but I don’t know how to gauge or judge getting back into the club, the business, because corporations are frightened.”
He continued, “People are afraid of all this. Fear is the overriding operative word when it comes to whether they believe it or not. … I have to just continue on. It’s rough, because people are scared, and their fear leads them. And I have to just persevere because I still have a creative life.”