Thandie Newton: My groping ordeal at the hands of male co-star
ONE of Britain’s best-known actresses has claimed she was sexually assaulted by a male co-star.
Thandie Newton, star of hit films Crash, Mission: Impossible II and The Pursuit of Happyness, made the claim as she railed against the ‘widespread’ problem of sex abuse in the film industry and other walks of life. She said: ‘I’ve literally been in situations where a co-actor has groped me and tried to engage me and I’m like, “What the hell, I’ve got one kid and a husband – what are you doing?”
‘If I’d been an 18-year-old girl, desperate, I’m not sure. And attracted to him, let’s say. That could have turned into a situation.’
The Bafta-winning star added: ‘It’s a widespread problem in every single industry, in every single place.’
Miss Newton, 43, who is now a mother of three, gave birth to her first child, Ripley, in 2000. She has not identified the co-star who allegedly groped her nor the film they were working on.
The actress, who is married to scriptwriter Ol Parker and is known for her outspoken views, also revealed that she once challenged a producer over why she should appear topless in a scene.
She claimed he replied: ‘Thandie. Kid. Think about it – Thandie Newton, top off, ratings.’
Although she did not reveal which film the exchange related to, Miss Newton did bare her breasts during a controversial sex scene for the hit 2013 crime drama Rogue. But on that occasion, the star said the topless scene was justified in terms of the plot and that she was comfortable with both cast and crew.
She said at the time: ‘It serves the story – it was necessary. In terms of the pragmatic, how do you deal with it… you cast people who are sensitive and kind and professional.’
Miss Newton added: ‘I was incredibly fortunate to work with the actors I worked with. When it comes to those scenes, it’s just about sitting with the director, talking about what’s going to happen, being really clear on how it’s going to be shot and on what’s necessary, so you don’t do any more than you need to do.’
The actress, who is vegan, shared a photograph of herself earlier this month breastfeeding her two-year-old son Booker at a music festival.
Miss Newton captioned the image, which she shared with her 40,000 Instagram followers, writing: ‘Perfect happiness. This is what my body is made for. And the rest is my choice. #Freedom.’
And earlier this year the star, whose other big screen credits include Jefferson in Paris, W., and Rock n Rolla, revealed that when she was a young actress a director had filmed up her skirt during an audition and subsequently showed the footage to his friends.
She said she felt compelled to keep speaking about the issue to protect young people, but admitted that a publicist had previously warned her about being so vocal on the subject of sex abuse in show business because of the effect that it could have on her career.
Miss Newton, who is about to appear in the new sci-fi TV series Westworld, which is based on the classic 1973 film of the same name starring Yul Brynner, is also backing a campaign to end tipping.
She claimed the tipping system meant female staff were vulnerable to abuse at the hands of both their customers and bosses, adding ‘you’ve got to be nice to the manager who gropes you in the back’.