Freeman accused of sexual harassment
Actor apologizes to ‘anyone who felt disrespected’
Morgan Freeman, one of the most celebrated actors in the film industry, has been accused of sexual harassment by several women, according to a report by CNN on Thursday. The accusations ranged from unwanted touching to sexually suggestive comments — on movie sets, in office environments and during meetings with the news media.
One production assistant told CNN that she had endured several months of harassment while working on the set of Going in Style, a film released last year starring Freeman, Alan Arkin and Michael Caine.
A woman described as a senior member of the production staff of Now You See Me, a 2013 movie, said Freeman would routinely comment on her physical appearance and that of her assistant.
Three reporters said Freeman made inappropriate comments to them during publicity events to promote coming films. One reporter, Chloe Melas of CNN, said that during an interview last year for Going in Style, when she was six months pregnant, Freeman looked her up and down and told her, “You are ripe.”
“Right when I walked into the room, he began to make sexually suggestive comments to me,” Melas, one of the authors of the CNN report, said on air Thursday.
In a statement after the article was published, Freeman, 80, said: “I am not someone who would knowingly make anyone feel uneasy. I apologize to anyone who felt uncomfortable or disrespected — that was never my intent.”
Freeman is the latest high profile entertainment figure to be accused of mistreating women. The women spoke to CNN on the condition of anonymity and said they had not complained about Freeman’s behavior because they feared for their jobs.