He was left shaken by the former Golden Globes president after the latter's unwanted advances.
Just to remind us that it's not just women who have suffered at the hands of sexual predators in Hollywood, Brendan Fraser has stepped forward to reveal that he too was assaulted by a powerful figure in the film industry fifteen years ago. He claims the incident left him 'blacklisted'.
Brendan Fraser at the Cantor Fitzgerald Charity Day
The 49-year-old revealed that it was the former president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Philip Berk, who molested him at a hotel in California back in 2003. It's not the first we've heard about this particular incident, but it's the first time Brendan has spoken up about it.
'His left hand reaches around, grabs my ass cheek, and one of his fingers touches me in the taint', he said in an interview with GQ magazine. 'And he starts moving it around. I felt ill. I felt like a little kid. I felt like there was a ball in my throat. I thought I was going to cry.'
According to the article, Berk later apologised to the actor in writing after his representatives complained to the HFPA. Though, of course, it was hardly a letter of confession, despite the fact that he admitted to pinching Brendan's butt jokingly in his memoir.
'My apology admitted no wrongdoing, the usual 'If I've done anything that upset Mr. Fraser, it was not intended and I apologise'', GQ reported him as saying. 'Mr. Fraser's version is a total fabrication.'
The original story regarding this incident came out in 2005 via the New York Times, but since then the actor admits he has never had 'the courage to speak up for risk of humiliation, or damage to my career'. Indeed, he believes the incident caused a significant decline in his work. '[It] made me retreat. It made me feel reclusive', he said.
'I became depressed', he continued. 'I was blaming myself and I was miserable-because I was saying, 'This is nothing; this guy reached around and he copped a feel.' That summer wore on-and I can't remember what I went on to work on next.'
In a statement, the HFPA said that they were currently investigating this incident further, having been previously unaware of the extent of the assault.
'Over the years we've continued a positive working relationship with Brendan, which includes announcing Golden Globe nominees, attending the ceremony and participating in press conferences', they wrote.
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