Former 'Voice' Contestant Ryan Gallagher Denies Violating COVID-19 Protocols

Ryan Gallagher is speaking out about his exit from The Voice. Host Carson Daly announced on last Monday's episode of the series that Gallagher "had to exit the competition" -- and in a statement to ET, Gallagher's manager says his client was removed from the show unfairly. 

“Last Sunday, Nov. 29, my client Ryan Gallagher, who was a leading contender as part of Kelly Clarkson’s team on the current season of NBC's The Voice, was dismissed by NBC and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios for an alleged violation of the show’s COVID-19 protocol," Gallagher's personal manager, Michael Catalano, tells ET. 

"In my opinion, nothing could be further from the truth," he adds. 

According to Catalano, Gallagher understands how serious the pandemic is, as his mother was recently hospitalized in Michigan with COVID-19 and was in the ICU for three weeks. "It was a scary time for Ryan and his family and he certainly would not knowingly put anyone at risk by not adhering to the show’s COVID-19 policy," Catalano says. 

"As you can imagine there is more to the story here than the show has announced and at an appropriate time and place of our choosing Ryan and I will be able to share the balance of the details, as well as Ryan’s side of the story," Catalano continues, adding that Gallagher is "devastated" by his dismissal. 

"Ryan is so touched by the massive outpouring of support he has received from thousands of viewers who were hugely disappointed by the show’s actions and are vowing to support him in his future endeavors.  He remains very, very appreciative.  Thank you for your continued support of Ryan Gallagher during this difficult time," Catalano concludes. 

NBC and MGM, however, claim that Gallagher did breach COVID-19 protocols. 

"Ryan is a talented artist, however The Voice has strict COVID protocols in place to secure a safe set for our crew, coaches and contestants. We were made aware of a breach in those protocols, and after examining the situation, and out of abundance of caution, we determined that Ryan could not participate in our Monday night show without potentially putting others at risk. Therefore, we made the difficult decision to remove Ryan from the competition," NBC and MGM said in a statement to People. 

Following news of his exit on the show last week, Gallagher promised on his Instagram Story that he would be sharing "details." 

"Thank you everybody for your concern for my family," he said. "However everybody's fine, that's not the cause of what happened tonight on The Voice. I didn't drop out of the show. Details are still to come, I'll keep you posted."

The Voice airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. PT/ET on NBC. See more in the video below. 

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