"Scandal" actor Tony Goldwyn says he was sexually harassed
"Scandal" star Tony Goldwyn said he was sexually harassed when he was an acting student. Goldwyn said he was moved to speak about his experience after Lupita Nyong'o wrote an opinion piece in the New York Times about fending off Harvey Weinstein when she was a young aspiring actress.
Goldwyn told "Access Hollywood" that Nyong'o's story resonated with him.
"It happened to me as a young guy, when I was literally Lupita's age. It happened to me by a man and it wasn't as extended or awful as what Lupita went through, but it was the same thing," said Goldwyn. "It was the casting couch and I didn't understand quite what was going on, or what was happening."
Goldwyn echoed Nyong'o's sentiments about trying to brush off the incident and said, "I thought it was my fault. I thought I was misunderstanding the situation, and only afterwards did I realize what had happened. It took me a couple years to get over it."
He added that he knows many women have experienced such harassment, not just actresses.
"It's something women have to deal with in every situation, in every industry with powerful men," he explained.
When Nyong'o published her op-ed, Goldwyn thanked her on Twitter and said, "Women need to know your brothers have your backs. Real men aren't 'like that.' End the silence."
Since the Weinstein scandal first broke and the #MeToo movement took off, dozens of celebrities including Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Bjork and others have come forward to say they were sexually harassed or assaulted by powerful men in the entertainment industry. Fewer men have spoken about getting harassed, but Terry Crews tweeted that a "Hollywood honcho" groped his genitals at an event last year.
Goldwyn said he wants to raise awareness about sexual harassment and assault.
