Women’s sex claims about film director add to furor
Allegation of sexual harassment also leveled at actor Dustin Hoffman
NEW YORK — Hollywood’s widening sexual harassment crisis has ensnared a prominent film director after six women — including actress Olivia Munn — accused Brett Ratner of sexual misconduct in a Los Angeles Times report on Wednesday.
Playboy Enterprises quickly distanced itself from Ratner as his attorney denied the allegations.
The reverberations also reached back 32 years as Oscarwinner Dustin Hoffman came forward to apologize for allegedly sexually harassing a 17-year-old intern in 1985.
Writer Anna Graham Hunter alleged in a Wednesday column in The Hollywood Reporter that the now 80-year-old actor groped her on the set of the TV movie “Death of a Salesman” and “talked about sex to me and in front of me.”
Hoffman issued a statement Wednesday, apologizing for “anything I might have done could have put her in an uncomfortable situation. I am sorry. It is not reflective of who I am.”
Munn also complained about on-set behavior, alleging that while visiting the set of Ratner’s “After the Sunset” in 2004, he masturbated in front of her in his trailer. Munn described the incident, without naming Ratner, in a 2010 collection of essays.
Ratner’s lawyer issued a statement Wednesday in which he said the director “vehemently denies the outrageous derogatory allegations” and is “confident that his name will be cleared once the current media frenzy dies down and people can objectively evaluate the nature of these claims.”
Ratner directed the “Rush Hour” film series, “Red Dragon,” ”X-Men: The Last Stand” and “Tower Heist.” He has a first- look deal with Warner Bros. and his RatPac and Dune Entertainment has an extensive deal with the studio that has encompassed much of Warner Bros.’ output, including “Wonder Woman,” “It” and “Justice League.”
“We are aware of the allegations in the LA Times and are reviewing the situation,” Warner Bros. said in a statement.
But Playboy Enterprises shelved any of its projects that involved Ratner, including working on a biopic of Hugh Hefner, which was to star Jared Leto. “We are deeply troubled to learn about the accusations against Brett Ratner. We find this kind of behavior completely unacceptable,” according to a statement.
Ratner and Hoffman become the latest Hollywood figures to face allegations of misusing their power to harass actresses, a list that now includes producer Harvey Weinstein and writer-director James Toback. Harassment allegations have also been levied against actors Kevin Spacey and Jeremy Piven.
The crisis has widened to other areas of entertainment and media, including country music. Kirt Webster, a major country music publicist, had denied accusations that he sexually assaulted an aspiring country singer.
A former singer named Austin Rice says Webster sexually assaulted him in 2008.
Webster Public Relations on Wednesday changed its name to Westby Public Relations, run by senior vice president Jeremy Westby. A statement said Webster is “taking time away from the business to focus on the egregious and untrue allegations.”