Brendan Fraser says speaking out about sexual assault allegations derailed his career
Brendan Fraser says that speaking out about his sexual assault allegations in public derailed his career.
The actor, most well-known for his role in The Mummy franchise, said he’d been left in both “emotional” and “personal distress” due to the alleged incident. Speaking to CBS about the effect that the matter had on his career, Fraser acknowledged that going public with his accusation had “derailed” future projects.
Asked in a new interview with Lee Cohen if it had changed the trajectory of his path in acting, The Whale star admitted: “Well, yes, because there’s a system in place that is about power. And I had played by the rules up until that point. And I felt like, OK, now, suddenly, I’ve been violated. And it has gone too far. And I will no longer abide this.”
He added: “It was causing me emotional distress, it was causing me personal distress.” The Hollywood leading man went on to explain that the Me Too movement, which began to surge through Hollywood in 2017, helped him to come forward with his own allegations.
“I spoke up because I saw so many of my friends and colleagues who, at that time, were bravely emerging to speak their truth to power,” Fraser said. “And, I had something to say too.”
The actor’s sexual assault claims were made against former Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Philip Berk. He went public with the allegations in 2018 in an interview with GQ. At the time he said that his absence from the big screen was part-inspired by an alleged encounter he had with Berk.
Fraser claimed that Berk sexually assaulted him while leaving a HFPA-hosted luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel in 2003. After describing the incident in detail, he told the publication: “I felt ill. I felt like a little kid. I felt like there was a ball in my throat. I thought I was going to cry. I felt like someone had thrown invisible paint on me.”
Berk has since responded to the allegations made by Fraser in a statement released via his own personal website, stating: “Of course the accusation is absurd. Not only would the alleged assault have to have taken place in a crowded room, but I would have to be a Marvel superhero to accomplish such a feat.”
Fraser is making a return to the big-screen, and earning many plaudits from the press and public, with The Whale – due for release in the UK on February 3 2023.
For help, advice or more information regarding sexual harassment, assault and rape in the UK, visit the Rape Crisis charity website. In the US, visit RAINN.
The post Brendan Fraser says speaking out about sexual assault allegations derailed his career appeared first on NME.
JJ Nattrass
NME
