Hollywood has a sexual misconduct issue, and Ben Affleck wants to help.
Affleck wants to help stop the sexual harassment that seems to be rampant in the entertainment industry, he told The Associated Press in an interview on Sunday. The actor has also announced that he will donate his future residuals from Weinstein Company and Miramax movies to RAINN and Film Independent.
The Justice League star told AP he was "looking at my own behaviour and addressing that and making sure I'm part of the solution."
The AP didn't specify what Affleck meant by his "own behaviour." In October, a clip of Affleck allegedly groping Hilarie Burton on TRL in 2003 resurfaced online. (A clip from 2004 that shows Affleck pulling Canadian journalist Anne-Marie Losique onto his lap also resurfaced, but Losique has said that it was not sexual harassment.)
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"I acted inappropriately toward Ms. Burton and I sincerely apologize," Affleck tweeted about the incident.
Burton's husband, Walking Dead star Jeffrey Dean Morgan, also addressed the situation during an interview with Entertainment Tonight.
"I don't want to make a big deal of it, because [Hilarie] didn't, but I think everything that's come out in the last couple of weeks, starting with Harvey Weinstein — anybody who has talked about it, and even those who haven't yet, are incredibly brave, and I think it's time for change," Morgan told ET. "Hopefully, all this stuff is going to change this business. It's prevalent all over, and I'm proud of all these women. All women and my wife."
During the AP interview, Affleck also said that "more women need to be pushed to power." The AP notes that Affleck also said sexual misconduct should be "a men's issue" because men need to be advocates for women to stop this behaviour as well.
The interview with Affleck comes after dozens of women have accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual misconduct. Other Hollywood figures, including actor Kevin Spacey and director Brett Ratner, are also facing sexual misconduct allegations.
If you have experienced sexual violence of any kind, please visit Rape Crisis or call 0808 802 9999.
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