LOS ANGELES — Columbus Short is a master of career reinvention.
The “Scandal” co-star began working in commercials as a teenager, became a choreographer for Britney Spears and then turned actor and landed on the hit ABC political thriller.
His latest plan was to make it in music, starting with a newly released single. Instead, Short, 31, is facing the plight of other troubled performers: out of his plum TV job as he confronts alleged misbehavior that has overshadowed his success.
His marriage is at stake as well, and the newly acquired affluence he owes to an industry that may give a series star like Charlie Sheen second and third chances but shows little patience with mid-level performers who roil the waters.
And that is what Short has done.
A 2010 fight on a basketball court at a Los Angeles gym led to a charge of battery that was resolved when he pleaded no contest to a lesser charge and was sentenced to three years of informal probation.
In February, Short was arrested twice by police after his wife, Tuere Short, called to report he was being abusive. He has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor spousal battery.
In March, he was charged with felony battery after allegedly knocking a man unconscious in a West Hollywood bar fight and faces a May arraignment.
Three weeks ago, his wife accused him of threatening her with a knife during a fight, stabbing a couch as he pinned her to it and threatening to kill her with the couple’s 2-year-old daughter in the house. She left, filed for divorce and obtained a temporary restraining order.
Jeff Jacquet, Short’s attorney, couldn’t be reached for comment Monday. But Jacquet wrote in an April 23 court filing that Tuere Short’s restraining order filing had “a number of egregiously false statements” but did not go into detail to rebut any of the domestic violence claims.
His motion focused on the actor’s right to be at a hillside home in suburban Chatsworth that he began renting in January for nearly $7,000 a month. The lease, slated to run through December 2016, reflected some of Short’s long-term plans: The actor would have the option to buy the home for $2 million later this year.
The season finale of “Scandal” had Wright last seen in the sights of a gun, a cliffhanger that could be easily tweaked either way for the character to survive or not.
ABC and series creator Shonda Rhimes declined comment Monday. A call to a cellphone listed as belonging to Short was answered by a man who identified himself as his assistant and took a message, but the call was not returned.
Eric Deegans, TV critic for National Public Radio and author of “Race-Baiter,” said he was surprised by Short’s exit because the charges against him have yet to be proven in court. But Deegans said he understands the logistics at work.
“If (a case) comes to trial in the middle of next season, there would be more bad publicity as the show is airing,” along with taping disruptions, he said. This way, Short can focus on his defense and producers keep their attention on the series.
Rhimes has seen firsthand on another of her shows the toll that even a war of words can take. “Grey’s Anatomy” star Isaiah Washington was fired after his use of a gay slur in the presence of his co-stars caused a public uproar and tension on the set seven years ago.