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Actor Brendan Fraser says he wondered if he was "blacklisted" after he was allegedly groped by a former president of the organisation that hosts the Golden Globes.
Key points:
- Brendan Fraser says he was groped in a crowded room in 2003
- Former Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Philip Berk denies wrongdoing
- Fraser became depressed, wondered if he was 'blacklisted' after alleged incident
The Mummy trilogy star told men's magazine GQ he did not have the courage to speak up until now because of the risk of humiliation and damage to his career.
"Am I still frightened? Absolutely. Do I feel like I need to say something? Absolutely. Have I wanted to many, many times? Absolutely. Have I stopped myself? Absolutely," he said.
Fraser told GQ he was leaving a luncheon held by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) at a Beverly Hills Hotel in 2003 when former president Philip Berk went to shake his hand.
"His left hand reaches around, grabs my ass cheek, and one of his fingers touches me in the taint. And he starts moving it around," Fraser alleged.
"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."
Fraser said he eventually removed Mr Berk's hand and rushed out of the crowded room.
He said he told his then-wife Afton Smith what happened.
"I felt like someone had thrown invisible paint on me," he said.
Mr Berk wrote he 'pinched' Fraser's behind
Mr Berk is reported to have written in his 2014 autobiography With Signs and Wonders that he pinched Fraser's behind as a joke.
He also wrote Fraser pinched him back.
GQ reported Mr Berk disputed Fraser's account in an email, stating his version was "a total fabrication".
Mr Berk said he wrote a letter to Fraser after the incident but said that apology admitted no wrongdoing.
"If I've done anything that upset Mr Fraser, it was not intended and I apologise," Mr Berk said.
"His career declined through no fault of ours (HFPA)."
The HFPA declined to comment for GQ's story.
'The silence was deafening'
Fraser said he became depressed after the incident and told himself he deserved what happened.
"I was blaming myself and I was miserable — because I was saying 'this is nothing; this guy reached around and he copped a feel'," Fraser said.
The 49-year-old actor said the experience made him retreat but he also wondered if the HFPA blacklisted him as he was rarely invited back to the Globes after 2003.
"I don't know if this curried disfavour with the group, with the HFPA. But the silence was deafening."
Fraser is best known for playing Rick O'Connell in the Mummy trilogy, the last film of which was released in 2008.
He also starred in the 1997 blockbuster George of the Jungle.
Terry Crews tweets support for Fraser
Actor and former NFL player Terry Crews tweeted his support for Fraser and noted "his assault experience is extremely similar to mine".
In October Crews revealed his own story of being sexually assaulted by a Hollywood heavyweight in the wake of allegations against powerful executive producer Harvey Weinstein.
In a series of tweets, Crews alleged he had been groped but did not retaliate or speak out for fear of losing work or being ostracised in the entertainment industry.
Topics: sexual-offences, film-movies, arts-and-entertainment, community-and-society, united-states
First posted