Eight women have accused Morgan Freeman of inappropriate behaviour and harassment, recalling incidents that took place on movie sets, at his company and during interviews.
An investigative report from CNN cites 16 sources in total: eight of whom said they were victims of harassment or inappropriate behaviour, and eight who said they had witnessed Freeman's alleged conduct.
UPDATE (5/24, 1:46 p.m. EDT): Freeman has now issued a statement in light of the allegations. The actor said, "Anyone who knows me or has worked with me knows I am not someone who would intentionally offend or knowingly make anyone feel uneasy. I apologize to anyone who felt uncomfortable or disrespected — that was never my intent."
A production assistant who worked with Freeman on heist comedy Going in Style alleged that Freeman subjected her to unwanted touching and comments about her clothing. In one incident, the assistant recalled that Freeman "kept trying to lift up my skirt and asking if I was wearing underwear."
Another woman who was a senior production crew member for the movie Now You See Me in 2012 told CNN that Freeman harassed her and her female assistant by making comments about their bodies.
"We knew that if he was coming by... not to wear any top that would show our breasts, not to wear anything that would show our bottoms, meaning not wearing clothes that [were] fitted," she said.
Seven people spoke to CNN about incidents of harassment at Freeman's production company Revelations Entertainment, with one allegedly witnessed by company co-founder Lori McCreary.
Three entertainment reporters also spoke to CNN about times Freeman had allegedly made inappropriate remarks to them during interviews.
CNN reporter Chloe Melas, who also co-authored the network's story, said that while interviewing Freeman for Going in Style more than a year ago, alleged that the actor made comments about her being six months pregnant, repeatedly looking her up and down and saying more than once a variation of "I wish I was there," adding, "you are ripe." CNN notes that cameras recorded the first remark, but not the second.
CNN reached out to "dozens" of other people who had worked for or with Freeman. Some would praise him as a "consummate professional" on set and in office, while others immediately named Freeman immediately as someone who subjected coworkers to the behaviour described above.
CNN reached out to a spokesperson for Freeman, who then asked the network to email him a detailed list of the accusations against the actor. The spokesperson did not respond to CNN's multiple email followups for comment.
McCreary's spokesperson also declined to comment. You can read CNN's full story here.
Vancouver's TransLink had announced Freeman as the voice of its transit system as part of a Visa promotion only a day prior to the allegations being reported.
UPDATE: (5/24, 12:16 p.m. EDT): TransLink says it will pause Freeman's voice announcements on its transit system in light of the allegations against the actor.
An investigative report from CNN cites 16 sources in total: eight of whom said they were victims of harassment or inappropriate behaviour, and eight who said they had witnessed Freeman's alleged conduct.
UPDATE (5/24, 1:46 p.m. EDT): Freeman has now issued a statement in light of the allegations. The actor said, "Anyone who knows me or has worked with me knows I am not someone who would intentionally offend or knowingly make anyone feel uneasy. I apologize to anyone who felt uncomfortable or disrespected — that was never my intent."
A production assistant who worked with Freeman on heist comedy Going in Style alleged that Freeman subjected her to unwanted touching and comments about her clothing. In one incident, the assistant recalled that Freeman "kept trying to lift up my skirt and asking if I was wearing underwear."
Another woman who was a senior production crew member for the movie Now You See Me in 2012 told CNN that Freeman harassed her and her female assistant by making comments about their bodies.
"We knew that if he was coming by... not to wear any top that would show our breasts, not to wear anything that would show our bottoms, meaning not wearing clothes that [were] fitted," she said.
Seven people spoke to CNN about incidents of harassment at Freeman's production company Revelations Entertainment, with one allegedly witnessed by company co-founder Lori McCreary.
Three entertainment reporters also spoke to CNN about times Freeman had allegedly made inappropriate remarks to them during interviews.
CNN reporter Chloe Melas, who also co-authored the network's story, said that while interviewing Freeman for Going in Style more than a year ago, alleged that the actor made comments about her being six months pregnant, repeatedly looking her up and down and saying more than once a variation of "I wish I was there," adding, "you are ripe." CNN notes that cameras recorded the first remark, but not the second.
CNN reached out to "dozens" of other people who had worked for or with Freeman. Some would praise him as a "consummate professional" on set and in office, while others immediately named Freeman immediately as someone who subjected coworkers to the behaviour described above.
CNN reached out to a spokesperson for Freeman, who then asked the network to email him a detailed list of the accusations against the actor. The spokesperson did not respond to CNN's multiple email followups for comment.
McCreary's spokesperson also declined to comment. You can read CNN's full story here.
Vancouver's TransLink had announced Freeman as the voice of its transit system as part of a Visa promotion only a day prior to the allegations being reported.
UPDATE: (5/24, 12:16 p.m. EDT): TransLink says it will pause Freeman's voice announcements on its transit system in light of the allegations against the actor.
BREAKING: @TransLink says In light of information they have learned through news stories of serious allegations against actor Morgan Freeman, they have decided to pause his voice announcements as part of a VISA ad campaign on the transit system.
— Global BC (@GlobalBC) May 24, 2018
