CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses sexual assault. If you would like to talk to a counsellor about rape, sexual assault or domestic violence, give the people over at 1800 RESPECT a call on 1800 737 732.
In a series of Tweets overnight, Rose McGowan said that she was sexually assaulted by an unnamed Hollywood executive, and stayed silent about it after receiving advice that she would “never win” in a case against the powerful studio head.
McGowan had previously alluded to her own experiences of sexual assault in an interview with Buzzfeed, when discussing the multiple rape allegations levelled against comedian Bill Cosby.
At the time, she told an interviewer that the assault had altered the course of her life, mentioning a “rumoured serial predator in the entertainment industry, a powerful figure who is whispered about but never exposed.”
The actress-turned-filmmaker expanded upon these remarks her Tweets overnight, beginning by saying that a criminal defence attorney advised her that she wouldn’t succeed against the unnamed studio head “because I’d done a sex scene in a film.”
Alongside the hashtag #WhyWomenDontReport, McGowan said that she and a former boyfriend had sold a film to the studio head for distribution, and that she felt forced into silence after the incident.
In her Tweets, McGowan went on to say that incidents surrounding the individual are an “open secret” in Hollywood, and that the media at the time “shamed” her while “adulating” her rapist.
“It’s time for some goddamned honesty in this world,” she later added.
The statements come as the media’s attention is focused on the alleged sexual misconduct of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, with multiple women coming forward to allege assault against him.
McGowan has been a vocal campaigner for pro-choice organisation Emily’s List, and overnight, shared a video urging women to vote against Trump on November 8:
Photo: Steven A Henry / Getty.
