Ex-Claptrap Voice Actor Alleges Randy Pitchford Once Assaulted Him

Former Claptrap voice actor and Gearbox President of Strategic Partnerships & Licensing David Eddings recently took to Twitter to explain his absence in Borderlands 3. Essentially, he walked away from the role after Gearbox allegedly refused to fairly compensate him for his work. Eddings’ allegation prompted a response from Gearbox CEO, Randy Pitchford, who claims the former Gearbox employee is “disgruntled” at having been terminated. The CEO also said the payment-related allegations are false, as the studio offered to pay Eddings “2x scale-twice union rates.” According to Eddings, however, his troubles with the studio didn’t begin and end with compensation. Allegedly, Pitchford once physically assaulted him.

To set the record straight, Eddings took to Twitter once more. This time, he opted to share his side in a lengthy thread, which addressed both the drama surrounding his compensation, or lack thereof, and the new assault allegation. Eddings’ thread also mentioned the seemingly underhanded way in which Gearbox reportedly conducts business with employees.

The first tweet in Eddings’ Twitter thread is featured below, but his multipart explanation warrants a firsthand read:

I was fine moving on after Gearbox. But when my former boss starts mouthing off about various aspects of my employment including “how highly compensated” I was and how “generous” he is, I feel obligated to correct the record.

— David Eddings (@davideddings) May 7, 2019

Eddings claims he was initially willing to return to Borderlands 3 on two key conditions. First, he’d reprise the Claptrap role for “‘free’ in exchange for past royalties owed.” Second, he wanted an apology from Pitchford. Allegedly, the Gearbox CEO “physically assaulted” him during GDC 2017 in the Marriott Marquis lobby. If Eddings’ allegations are true, it appears neither of his two conditions were met, hence Claptrap’s new voice for Borderlands 3.