Visit Counter

Thursday, November 2, 2017

Kevin Spacey, Dustin Hoffman, Jeremy Piven, Brett Ratner Accused of Sexual Misconduct




They're coming out of the woodwork!



If they had an Academy Award for all those who WEREN'T engaged in sexual harassment no one would be there to accept the Oscar.




-------------------------------------------





by Kalhan Rosenblatt

New sexual misconduct accusations have been leveled against several Hollywood A-listers as the fallout from the Harvey Weinstein scandal continues to roil the film industry. 

Oscar winner Dustin Hoffman, "Entourage" star Jeremy Piven and "Rush Hour" director Brett Ratner all face new accusations of sexual misconduct. 

Additionally, a second actor has come forward to accuse Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct. 

Mexican actor Roberto Cavazos wrote on Facebook that he encountered Spacey at the Old Vic theater in London where Spacey was serving as artistic director — a tenure that lasted from 2004 until 2015 — and speculated that the number of Spacey's accusers could be similar to that of Weinstein, which is in the dozens. 

In a previous statement to NBC News, a spokesperson on behalf of Weinstein said, "Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein." 

"There are many of us with a 'Kevin Spacey story,'" Cavazos wrote in a post that has been translated from Spanish. 

Spacey would invite men to talk about their careers, Cavazos said, and when the men arrived, they would find a "picnic with champagne on the stage, all beautifully lit up." He said Spacey would be in the bar of the theater and "squeez[e] whoever caught his attention." 

Cavazos said he never let it go further than that, but said others were more afraid to stop him. Cavazos only had knowledge of his own encounter and did not witness any encounters others had with Spacey — in his statement he said he only heard about the incidents after-the-fact. 


Spacey's representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding Cavazos' accusations. 

In a statement, the Old Vic said it was "deeply dismayed" by the allegations made against Spacey during his time as creative director. 

"Inappropriate behavior by anyone working at The Old Vic is completely unacceptable. We aim to foster a safe and supportive environment without prejudice, harassment or bullying of any sort, at any level," the statement said. 

Kevin Spacey at the Juilliard School in New York in 2017. Ryan Pfluger / the New York Times via Redux Pictures

The latest allegation against Spacey comes days after actor Anthony Rapp accused the "House of Cards" star of making sexual advances when Rapp was 14 years old. Rapp first made the allegations to BuzzFeed News

"I'm beyond horrified to hear his story. I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago," Spacey wrote in a statement posted to Twitter. "But if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior, and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years." 



Netflix, which produces "House of Cards," announced on Tuesday that it would be suspending production of the series' sixth season as it investigated accusations against Spacey. In a separate announcement a day earlier, Netflix confirmed that season six would be the show's last but said the decision was not due to the allegations. 

And Spacey was just one of many Hollywood power players facing the fallout of newly-surfaced accusations. 

On Wednesday, The Los Angeles Times published an article detailing six women who claimed director Brett Ratner had behaved inappropriately with them. 


In the article, the Times spoke with actresses Olivia Munn, Katharine Towne, Jamie Ray Newman, Natasha Henstridge, Jorina King and model and singer Eri Sasaki, who described to varying degrees accusations of how the director behaved inappropriately with them.


Brett Ratner arrives at the Wolfgang Puck's Post-Hollywood Walk of Fame Star Ceremony Celebration in Beverly Hills, California on April 26, 2017. Willy Sanjuan / Invision/AP file



Henstridge and Munn both told The Times about separate occasions early in their careers when Ratner masturbated in front of them. 

Munn's story, she said, took place in 2004 when she was delivering food as a favor to what she believed was Ratner's empty trailer. She said she was startled to find the director inside. 

"He walked out ... with his belly sticking out, no pants on, shrimp cocktail in one hand and he was furiously masturbating in the other," Munn told The Times. "And before I literally could even figure out where to escape or where to look, he ejaculated." 

Martin Singer, Ratner's attorney, staunchly denied each woman's allegations, and called Munn's story "a complete lie." 

Ratner said in a statement Wednesday that "In light of the allegations being made, I am choosing to personally step away from all Warner Bros.- related activities." 

"I don't want to have any possible negative impact to the studio until these personal issues are resolved," Ratner said in the statement. 

Dustin Hoffman arrives at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association Grants Banquet in Beverly Hills, California on Aug. 2, 2017.Jordan Strauss / Invision/AP file

Shortly after The Times published its story, The Hollywood Reporter published a first-person account from a woman who said that when she was a 17-year-old production assistant on the 1985 film adaptation of "Death of a Salesman," Dustin Hoffman grabbed her and used sexually explicit language with her. 

Anna Graham Hunter wrote that as a teen, she coveted the attention from celebrities she met on set, including Hoffman. 

"And yes, I loved the attention from Dustin Hoffman. Until I didn't," Graham Hunter wrote. 

In copies of letters she wrote to her sister during her five weeks on set, Graham Hunter detailed the alleged unwelcome comments and touching from Hoffman. 

"Today, when I was walking Dustin to his limo, he felt my ass four times. I hit him each time, hard, and told him he was a dirty old man," Graham Hunter wrote in a letter on January 31, 1985. 

She also describes Hoffman asking her for a foot massage and talking about her sex life. 

Hoffman responded to the story, saying, "I have the utmost respect for women and feel terrible that anything I might have done could have put her in an uncomfortable situation. I am sorry. It is not reflective of who I am." 

Jeremy Piven attends the Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on Sept. 17, 2017. Mike Blake / Reuters

Earlier this week, "Entourage" star Jeremy Piven denied allegations of sexual misconduct made by actress and reality television star Ariane Bellamar. Bellamar tweeted that Piven groped her on the set of the show. 

"Hey @jeremypiven! ‘Member when you cornered me in your trailer on the #Entourage set? ‘Member grabbing my boobies on the [couch] without asking??" Bellamar tweeted.

Piven responded in a statement to TODAY saying the allegations against him are false. 

"I unequivocally deny the appalling allegations being peddled about me. It did not happen," Piven said. "It takes a great deal of courage for victims to come forward with their histories, and my hope is that the allegations about me that didn't happen, do not detract from stories that should be heard."






Share/Bookmark

No comments :

Post a Comment