It seems the cat is truly out of the bag when it comes to predators in Hollywood. A massive report in the Los Angeles Times today says that 38 women have come forward to accuse veteran director James Toback of sexual harassment.
You may not know James Toback, but you may or may not be familiar with some of his films: he directed Tyson, the hagiographical documentary about Mike Tyson, as well as a series of early vehicles for Robert Downey Jr, like Two Girls and a Guy and The Pick-Up Artist. Not exactly top-tier directorial talent, but he has his foot in Hollywood’s door.
Rumours of Toback’s sexual misconduct – as with Harvey Weinstein – have been an open secret in Hollywood for some time. Gawker published a series of reports and accounts of Toback’s skeezy conduct as far back as 2010, but now in the post-Weinstein era the big newspapers are on the case.
The LA Times report goes into more detail into some of the allegations, claiming that Toback is a serial predator who approaches women on the street in New York and offers them opportunities in the film industry, before luring them to secluded areas like his apartment, where he sexually harasses or propositions them.
Here’s an excerpt:
During these meetings, many of the women said, Toback boasted of sexual conquests with the famous and then asked humiliating personal questions. How often do you masturbate? How much pubic hair do you have? He’d tell them, they said, that he couldn’t properly function unless he “jerked off” several times a day. And then he’d dry-hump them or masturbate in front of them, ejaculating into his pants or onto their bodies and then walk away. Meeting over.
The women’s accounts portray James Toback as a man who, for decades, sexually harassed women he hired, women looking for work and women he just saw on the street. The vast majority of these women — 31 of the 38 interviewed — spoke on the record. The Times also interviewed people that the women informed of the incidents when they occurred.
Before the Times report, Toback’s name popped up on social media as women took part in the #MeToo campaign. It seemed only a matter of time before the media followed it up.
https://twitter.com/echodanon/status/917930237303730176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Fentertainment%2Fla-et-mn-james-toback-sexual-harassment-allegations-20171018-story.html
Us too: by bosses, boyfriends, male babysitters, taxi drivers, strangers and movie director/pig #jamestoback #metoo
— Veruca Salt (@verucasalt) October 16, 2017
I have my own story about #jamestoback from when I was 18. It was vile & disgusting. He was around 50 at the time. That’s why I believe her https://t.co/qurkJDVOzQ
— Kelley Raleigh (@kelleyraleigh) September 17, 2017
It’s highly unlikely that Toback will be the last predator to be exposed thanks to the fallout surrounding Weinstein.
