Summary

• Timothy Hutton's role in Leverage: Redemption was written out due to serious rape allegations against him.
• Leverage: Redemption continued successfully without Nate Ford, focusing on other key characters from the original series.
• Hutton is in a legal battle with the studio for $3 million and has had limited acting roles post-controversy, including a minor role in Women of the Movement.

Contains discussion of sexual assault allegations and subsequent legal proceedings.

Leverage returned in 2021 with the revival Leverage: Redemption, but Timothy Hutton's Nate Ford was missing. 2008's Leverage ran for five seasons and united a band of criminals under Nate’s leadership to con the wealthy and corrupt. Although the team first formed as a way for Nate to get revenge on his old company for his son’s death, Leverage quickly grew beyond his vendetta, positioning the revival to continue without him after recent allegations made Tim Hutton’s continued role impossible.

At the end of Leverage, Nate Ford stepped down from the team, handing the reins to master thief Parker and embarking on a new life with grifter Sophie Devereaux. Parker, Eliot, and Hardison went on to form Leverage International and continued to pull off incredible heists around the world. But while Sophie returned for the revival, Timothy Hutton's Nate was permanently written out. The Timothy Hutton Leverage journey ended because the actor was surrounded by controversy. Here's the rationale behind why Timothy Hutton didn't return for Leverage: Redemption, and information about his current legal battle.

Leverage is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, and Leverage: Redemption is available on FreeVee

The Real Reason Timothy Hutton Didn’t Return For Leverage: Redemption

Allegations Were Made Against Hutton By Actress Sera Johnston

Timothy Hutton was fired from Leverage: Redemption due to a rape allegation. In 2020, actress Sera Johnston alleged that Timothy Hutton raped her when she was 14 years old in 1983. After Johnston’s accusation went public, Hutton’s then-current project Almost Family was canceled after one season. Leverage: Redemption was able to move forward with the rest of its ensemble cast, but Nate Ford will not reappear due to the allegations' gravity. The Timothy Hutton Leverage character was written out of the show when Sophie said Nate died from a heart attack.

The show's original run closed the book on Nate Ford’s story, rendering his appearance unnecessary.

Leverage: Redemption made no sacrifices to the plot in leaving Hutton behind, as the show's original run closed the book on Nate Ford’s story, rendering his appearance unnecessary. Though Nate was the emotional center of Leverage, the new series refocused the show on the rest of the team to turn Sophie, Parker, and Eliot into the leading characters, while Aldis Hodge’s Hardison returns part-time. The revival also added Noah Wyle (ER and The Librarian), as a lawyer looking for redemption, filling the "inside man” role that Nate used to serve.

Despite the allegations, Timother Hutton was officially cleared in court and faced no charges.

Timothy Hutton Is Suing Leverage: Redemption’s Producers

The Actor Claims The Studio Still Owes Him $3 Million

Timothy Hutton and the producers of Leverage: Redemption ended up in a legal battle over Hutton's contract. The actor claims that the studio broke his contract and that they still owed him around $3 million. The lawsuit condemns Electric Entertainment for not properly looking into the allegations before firing him, stating his contract "didn't include a morality clause." In addition, Hutton would've been paid $175,000 per episode, with the promise of directing at least once a season. Electric Entertainment countersued Hutton for not disclosing the allegations during their contract negotiations.

Leverage: Redemption was more prepared than most to continue without Timothy Hutton.

While the Timothy Hutton Leverage role has ended, the team Nate brought together moved on to new heights in the revival. Many recent projects have cut, recast, or even digitally replaced cast members when sexual misconduct, assault allegations, or criminal charges were made public. Leverage: Redemption was more prepared than most to continue without Timothy Hutton. Leverage fans at least get to see the rest of the show’s beloved characters in the spotlight for the revival, continuing Nate’s legacy of complex heists and cons.

Timothy Hutton's Most Recent Role

He Had A Small Role In The Miniseries Women Of The Movement

The Timothy Hutton Leverage: Redemption role was the last major one that the actor had. Before that, he enjoyed success in the Netflix miniseries The Haunting of Hill House and led his own show in Almost Family, but those days of working as a leading man are behind him. Timothy Hutton has only had a couple of acting credits since the controversy, the first of which was in the miniseries Women of the Movement. He also featured in two episodes of the CBS action series S.W.A.T.

Besides S.W.A.T., Timothy Hutton has had no roles in the almost two following Leverage.

Women of the Movement was about Mamie Till-Mobley, Emmett Till's mother, and how she dealt with his murder and the fight for justice that followed it. Adrienne Warren played Mamie in the series, and Hutton took on the role of Jesse J. Breland, the prosecuting lawyer in Mississippi. He was only a recurring character in the series and was cast in August 2021, one month after Canadian prosecutors refused to bring criminal charges against the actor. However, besides S.W.A.T., Timothy Hutton has had no roles in the almost two following Leverage.