Mira Sorvino on the "unstoppable" movements of Me Too and Time's Up
Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino laughed out loud when she was asked whether coming forward with her sexual harassment allegations against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein was difficult. "I'm sorry I'm laughing. It was so difficult. That's why I'm laughing," Sorvino said Monday on "CBS This Morning."
"It was one of the hardest things I've ever done, actually, because it put publicly something that was intensely private and painful for me," Sorvino added.
As a prominent figure in the Me Too and Time's Up movements, Sorvino said they're only getting started. "It's unstoppable at this point," she said of the national reckoning that began after bombshell allegations against Weinstein were revealed in The New York Times and the New Yorker a little over a year ago. At least 80 women, including prominent actors like Salma Hayek, Rose McGowan, and Asia Argento, have leveled accusations against Weinstein, ranging from harassment to rape.
"I could not have imagined that I would be joined by a chorus of like-minded people from around the world who would raise their voice and say, 'Me Too,' and 'Time's Up,' and we want change," Sorvino said.
Now women are demanding better, she said, "because the status quo is not working."
"Now we're looking to change laws and we're looking to vote for candidates who have our best interests at heart," Sorvino said. "If you're not going to perform in such a way that protects and promotes our interests, makes it a safer, more meritocratic, equitable world for everyone and protects us from sexual violence and punishes perpetrators, then we don't want to vote for you."
When she's not working as an activist, Sorvino is also guest starring in the new season of "StartUp," a streaming series on Sony Crackle. She plays Rebecca Stroud, an NSA agent who is trying to take down the founders of a dark-web site being used for illegal activity. Sorvino said the show is "very timely."
"It's all about internet privacy and hacking and how much does the government or other people know about you through your online habits," she explained.
She said she enjoyed her character because she's "bizarre."
"She's kind of broken and trying to hide her broken edges without that much success. As you see, she doesn't really have an easy time making eye contact with people. She eats the same meal every day from the same fast food place," Sorvino said.
Her character "will do anything" for the U.S., Sorvino said, "including lie, cheat, steal, kill."
"As the story goes along, the characters have this moral conundrum: do we change our philosophy to potentially prevent something like another 9/11?"
You can stream "StartUp" Season 3 on Sony Crackle.