Morgan Freeman is speaking out again amid reports of his alleged inappropriate behavior towards women. “I am devastated that 80 years of my life is a
Morgan Freeman is speaking out again amid reports of his alleged inappropriate behavior towards women.
“I am devastated that 80 years of my life is at risk of being undermined, in the blink of an eye, by Thursday’s media reports. All victims of assault and harassment deserve to be heard. And we need to listen to them. But it is not right to equate horrific incidents of sexual assault with misplaced compliments or humor,” he said in a statement.
The 80 year old actor added, “I admit that I am someone who feels a need to try to make women and men feel appreciated and at ease around me. As a part of that, I would often try to joke with and compliment women, in what I thought were a light-hearted and humorous way. Clearly I was not always coming across the way I intended. And that is why I apologized on Thursday and will continue to apologize to anyone I might have upset, however unintentionally. But I also want to be clear: I did not create unsafe work environments. I did not assault women. I did not offer employment or advancement in exchange for sex. Any suggestion that I did so is completely false.”
According to an investigation by CNN, the actor’s alleged inappropriate behavior occurred on-set with female members of the production staff, with employees at Revelations Entertainment, the production company Morgan Freeman started in 1996 with business partner Lori McCreary and with reporters.