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- Chris D’Elia posted a YouTube video on Friday to address sexual misconduct allegations.
- While he condemned his past behavior, he maintained that his relationships were “consensual.”
- D’Elia was accused of exposing himself to women and pursuing underage girls on social media.
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Eight months after being accused of sexual misconduct, Chris D’Elia addressed the allegations in a new YouTube video.
On Friday, D’Elia uploaded a nearly 10-minute video titled “It’s been awhile” to talk about his past behavior and discuss his relationship with sex.
In June, D’Elia was accused of pursuing underage girls on social media after a Twitter user said he “groomed” her when she was 16. The “You” actor was later accused of exposing himself to women on two separate occasions, with one alleged incident in 2011 and the other in 2018.
He adamantly denied the allegations, saying each interaction was “legal and consensual,” but opened up further in his YouTube video.
"I know it looks bad," D'Elia, 40, said.
After seeking out therapy and medical advice during his hiatus, D'Elia said he realized that much of his life was explicitly focused on sexual relationships.
"What I've come to understand is this was always about sex to me. My life was - sex, it controlled my life. It was my focus all the time, and I had a problem. I do have a problem...I need to do work on that," he said.
D'Elia recalled when he began gaining notoriety as a stand-up comedian, it became easier to have sex with women and he felt "lucky."
"I can just do a show and then have sex," he said. "Or roll into a city and look in my inbox and start writing."
"I would get at least 50 messages after a show each city a night and I would reply to all of them," he said. "And I thought in my mind that being straight-up with these women was the right thing to do. I'd say, 'hey, come to my hotel room and let's have sex. Let's make out. Let's do this, let's do that.' And that was what I thought was right."
D'Elia said he's since realized that he was "treating sex like it's casual and being flippant with people."
He then offered an apology, saying that he's sorry for his blasé behavior and that he feels shameful.
After touching on power dynamics between fans and celebrities, D'Elia said his behavior had seeped into his personal relationships, including with his current fiancée.
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"I never stopped it. I cheated on most of the girls I've been with," D'Elia said. "I cheated on my fiancée now, and this is my dream girl. This is the girl I want to be with for the rest of my life and even that wouldn't stop what I was doing."
D'Elia said this was an opportunity for self-growth, as well as apologize to the people "who got caught up in that s---."
After the allegations, Los Angeles Times reported that D'Elia was dropped by his agent and his manager, but denied any misconduct.
"I know I have said and done things that might have offended people during my career, but I have never knowingly pursued any underage women at any point." D'Elia told TMZ. "All of my relationships have been both legal and consensual and I have never met or exchanged any inappropriate photos with the people who have tweeted about me."