Julia Roberts often wonders why she was “spared” the sexual harassment so rampant in Hollywood, because she never encountered misconduct during her rise to fame.
The Pretty Woman star was well aware of stories about the seedy side of the movie industry, but she admits no producer or director ever acted inappropriately in front of her – and now as so many of her peers detail sordid tales of alleged encounters with Hollywood heavyweights like Harvey Weinstein and James Toback, the Oscar winner almost feels guilty.
“It’s all so ugly in so many ways,” Julia told Today of the controversy currently gripping Hollywood.
“I’ve never had this experience,” she continued. “I almost feel bad saying that because I don’t know why I was spared, and you hear some of these heart-wrenching, awful stories, and I have a daughter. It is heartbreaking, but it’s not been a part of my experience.”
The 50-year-old mother of three then mused, “Perhaps I was subtly approached and didn’t recognize it for what it was… I don’t know.”
Roberts‘ remarks come weeks after stars like Angelina Jolie, Ashley Judd, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Rose McGowan spoke out about their past encounters with movie mogul Weinstein, accusing him of inappropriate behavior, and in McGowan’s case, rape.
Following the publication of a New York Times expose, detailing Weinstein’s misconduct, in early October (17), Roberts, whose 2013 film August: Osage County was produced by his firm The Weinstein Company, condemned the producer for his reported actions.
“A corrupt, powerful man wields his influence to abuse and manipulate woman. We’ve heard this infuriating, heartbreaking story countless times before. And now here we go again,” she shared in a statement. “I stand firm in the hope that we will finally come together as a society against this kind of predatory behavior, to help victims find their voices and their healing, and to stop it once and for all.”
Weinstein, who has since lost his job as the head of TWC, has acknowledged he behaved badly in the past, but has vehemently denied all allegations of non-consensual sex.
