Morgan Freeman has released a second statement in response to the CNN investigation alleging a history of sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour on numerous film sets.
In total, CNN spoke to 16 people. Eight said they were victims of what they believed to be sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour by Freeman. The other eight said they witnessed Freeman’s alleged behaviour.
One woman, a young production assistant on the set of Going in Style, alleges Freeman “kept trying to lift up my skirt and asking if I was wearing underwear”. The woman says she was the target of the actor’s behaviour for several months and alleges Freeman sexually harassed her by unwanted touching and repeatedly commenting on her figure and clothing.
Another women told CNN that she, and other female staff on the set of Now You See Me, deliberately wore loose clothing on the days the actor would be present on set:
“He did comment on our bodies… We knew that if he was coming by … not to wear any top that would show our breasts, not to wear anything that would show our bottoms, meaning not wearing clothes that [were] fitted.”
Freeman issued an apology in response to the investigation saying he would never “intentionally offend or knowingly make anyone feel uneasy. I apologize to anyone who felt uncomfortable or disrespected – that was never my intent.”
Earlier today, Freeman issued a second statement.
The statement, published on twitter by New York Times culture writer Sopan Deb, reads:
“I am devastated that 80 years of my life is at risk of being undermined, in the blink of an eye by Thursday’s media reports.
All victims of assault and harassment deserve to be heard. And we need to listen to them. But it is not right to equate horrific incidents of sexual assault with misplaced compliments of humour.
I admit that I am someone who feels a need to try to make women – and men – feel appreciated and at ease around me. As a part of of that, I would often try to joke with and compliment women, in what I thought was a light-hearted and humorous way.
Clearly I was not always coming across the way I intended. And that is why I apologized Thursday and will continue to apologize to anyone I might have upset, however unintentionally.
But I also want to be clear: I did not create unsafe work environments. I did not assault women. I did not offer employment or advancement in exchange for sex. Any suggestion that I did so is completely false.
— Morgan Freeman”
The month-long CNN investigation begun after CNN entertainment reporter Chloe Melas says she experienced inappropriate behaviour and comments by Freeman when she interviewed him during a press junket for Going in Style.
Melas, who was six months pregnant at the time, says Freeman shook her hand and would not let go while he looked her up and down and said, “You are ripe”.
Following her encounter with Freeman, Melas started to make phone calls to see if other women in the industry had experienced similar behaviour. This led to the investigation.
You can view the statement below:
https://twitter.com/SopanDeb/status/1000211609233580033
If you would like to talk to a counsellor about sexual harassment, please contact 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
