Relive with me and enjoy again the downfall of Armand Douglas Hammer. If you remember, Hammer’s Hollywood career had been going as smoothly as anything: there was his 2010 breakthrough playing the Winklevoss twins in The Social Network, his turn as Leonardo DiCaprio’s no. 2 in Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar, the 2018 Golden Globe for Call Me By Your Name. By 2020 he was a GQ cover star. The strapline? ‘Soul seeker. Scene stealer. Leading man.’
And cannibal, allegedly. In January 2021 an anonymous Instagram account called @houseofeffie posted screenshots supposedly showing Hammer’s texts to a woman. ‘Thinking of holding your heart in my hand and controlling when it beats,’ the messaged read. ‘I am 100 per cent a cannibal.’ An ex-girlfriend came forward and confirmed to the MailOnline that yes, now you mention it, Hammer had had some strange sexual tastes when they were together, too: ‘He was really into saying he wants to break one of your ribs and eat it. Like, barbecue it and eat it,’ she said.
Two months later, the anonymous woman revealed herself in a press conference as Effie Angelova and accused Hammer not just of cannibalism, but rape.
Down went the Hammer. A few months before posting the messages with Hammer on Instagram, Angelova had sent them to Hammer’s wife of ten years, television personality Elizabeth Chambers. Hammer admitted to the affair but not the cannibalism. Chambers had already filed divorce papers by the time Angelova said he’d raped her. Hammer was dropped by his talent agency, booted off his upcoming projects, went to live on the Cayman Islands and became a timeshare salesman.
Magazine articles are subscriber-only. Keep reading for just £1 a month
SUBSCRIBE TODAY- Free delivery of the magazine
- Unlimited website and app access
- Subscriber-only newsletters
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in