We hate to break it to you, but it looks like you actually might need to subscribe to Discovery+ to watch a shocking new documentary about former(?) actor Armie Hammer.
Hammer and his family are the subjects of the new docuseries House of Hammer, which chronicles five generations of alleged abuse of power. Multiple men in the family allegedly have a history of holding abusive power over others, and it looks like the women in their lives are ready to fight back.
“Magnify Succession a million times and it was my family,” says Casey Hammer, Armie’s aunt, in the series’ trailer.
The series features interviews with multiple women who claim they are survivors of the the actor’s abuse, bringing to light his family’s dark secrets — ranging from accusations of violence and abuse to political manipulation and financial fraud.
“The accusations of rape and abuse brought against Armie Hammer in the last few years are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the Hammer family. With House of Hammer, we witness truly disturbing details and sinister secrets that money and power couldn’t hide forever,” Jason Sarlanis, President of Crime and Investigative Content, Linear and Streaming, said in a statement.
“This documentary provides an important platform for the incredibly courageous women who came forward to share their stories, and we hope their courage inspires others to continue meaningful conversations around abuse in our society.”
The Hammer family’s history has already been divulged at length in a long but fascinating Vanity Fair piece. To sum up the key points, Armie’s great-great grandfather Dr. Julius Hammer was convicted of manslaughter after preforming an illegal abortion for a Russian diplomat. His sons made a fortune on oil by getting friendly with Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin. And over the decades there’s been instances of laundering money, Soviet espionage, briberies and a seemingly never-ending supply of mistresses.
But Armie’s father Michael took an interesting turn when he started redirecting some of his wealth to Christian causes after marrying Dru Mobley, a devout believer who seemed to temporarily reign in some of his excesses. Michael Hammer donated millions to organizations like Jews for Jesus and served on boards for Oral Roberts University and Pepperdine University. He also founded Grace Christian Academy and a radio station called Christian Communications Association, both in the Cayman Islands, where Armie is now currently hiding out and living.
Last year, Hammer was accused of rape and “other acts of violence” including cannibalism. (It should be noted the unintentional comedic timing of two of his former collaborators — Call Me By Your Name director Luca Guadagnino and co-star Timothée Chalamet — released the trailer for their cannibal-themed film Bones and All on the same day the House of Hammer trailer dropped.) Since the allegations, Hammer has been replaced in numerous roles, although he did manage to keep his spot in the underwhelming Death on the Nile. So there’s that.
House of Hammer will premiere Sept. 2 on Discovery+.