Several Women Accuse Morgan Freeman Of Sexual Harassment & Lewd Behaviour, Actor Issues Apology

Growing up, Hollywood looked like the Emerald City of Oz. Everything seemed perfect and shiny as it set the gold standard for movies. However, with time, the industry’s dark underbelly has come to light. Women from different sections of Hollywood have come forward with the truth of the horror they had to face via the #MeToo movement. And after Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and many more, it’s Morgan Freeman who has been accused of indecent behaviour by 16 people.

Morgan Freeman is considered as one of the most respectable actors in Hollywood. He gave amazing performances in movies like ‘Million Dollar Baby’, ‘Driving Miss Daisy’, ‘Seven’ and has received a plethora of awards throughout his career. For Batman fans he’s Lucius Fox and many others are a fan of his voice. But that’s just half of the story.

In a recent report by CNN, several women have come forward and alleged that Morgan Freeman has repeatedly harassed them, either verbally or physically. The months-long investigation began after CNN’s own Chloe Melas had a similar encounter with Freeman.

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Chloe Melas came to know about Morgan Freeman’s indecency when she attended the press junket for his movie ‘Going in Style’. According to the reporter, who was six months pregnant then, Freeman shook Melas’ hand and continued to do so whilst looking her up and down. After that, in a room full of people including Michael Caine and Alan Arkin, he said things like “I wish I was there” and “You are ripe”.

This prompted Melas to report to a CNN HR and then a Warner Bros. HR, who said that they couldn’t corroborate her account because only one of Freeman’s remarks were on record. Additionally, the Warner Bros. employees who were present said they hadn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary. However, Melas didn’t stop there and got in touch with other women to see if they’ve had similar experiences, and the response was eye-opening.

One of the accusations came from a former female manager of Morgan Freeman’s Revelations Entertainment who said that he harassed her on a daily basis, sometimes by staring at her breasts. She further told CNN that,

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“One time he stopped, looked me up and down as I walked into a room of people, and everyone burst out laughing. And I literally froze feeling very uncomfortable and one of the people in the office said, ‘Don’t worry, that’s just Morgan.’ That sort of interaction was when I stopped wearing a skirt around the office when he was there.”

Freeman has also been accused of walking up to an intern and massaging her shoulders until it got awkward and she had to wriggle out of the situation. Additionally, there are accounts of Freeman telling female employees to twirl for him in the office and making strange advances with other girls.

Morgan wasn’t a welcome presence on movie sets as well as he made mean comments about how women dressed or looked like. A 20-year-old production assistant of the movie ‘Going in Style’ said that,

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 “Freeman kept trying to lift up my skirt and asking if I was wearing underwear. Alan [Arkin] made a comment telling him to stop. Morgan got freaked out and didn’t know what to say. It was constant comments about the way I looked.”

The PA of ‘Now You See Me’ has cited similar incidents. However, it was the PA of ‘The Dark Knight’ who got to the core of the issue. She said that since it was Morgan Freeman, the most established actor on set, nobody had the courage to stand up to him. They feared that if they talked back, they would be the ones to get fired and that’s why this harassment kept happening.

After receiving all these accusations, CNN reached out to Morgan Freeman’s spokesperson for comments. Freeman ultimately released an apology statement saying,

“Anyone who knows me or has worked with me knows I am not someone who would intentionally offend or knowingly make anyone feel uneasy. I apologize to anyone who felt uncomfortable or disrespected — that was never my intent.”

Although Freeman’s apology was prompt, only time will tell if it’s enough to repair the damage done.

This revelation regarding Morgan Freeman might come as a shock to many. However, it’s another reminder that we should never go by outward appearances and make Gods out of hollow men. Additionally, it’s time to make a lot of changes in the entertainment industry and create safer workplaces for women.

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