My favorite fictional female president Bellamy Young, aka Millie Grant (sorry Geena Davis in Commander in Chief), spoke out against Ryan Seacrest working the Oscars’ red carpet in light of the recent sexual misconduct allegations.
Suzie Hardy made claims against Seacrest back in November, which he denied and E! conducted its own internal investigation and found the allegations “completely baseless.”
The allegations re-surfaced yesterday on Variety. Variety has obtained the letter from Hardy’s attorney to E! in which Hardy claims the host repeatedly sexually harassed and assaulted her while she was employed at E!. The allegations run from Seacrest groping her vagina to grinding his erection on her and slapping her butt so hard it left bruises.
Back when Hardy worked for the show in 2013, she was to meet with human-resources executives who inquired about the nature of her relationship with Seacrest. Hardy has emphasized that she never sought out HR, but that HR sought her out. That was when she told them about Seacrest’s actions.
It wasn’t just Hardy’s testimony, as she had a co-worker who was witness to some of the abuse.
A former co-worker of Hardy’s at “E! News” told Variety that Hardy described the incident to him at the time that it allegedly occurred, and also told him about several times when Seacrest hugged her against her will. He said that he saw Seacrest trip Hardy on numerous occasions, and that he also saw Seacrest multiple times push Hardy’s head into his crotch while she was tying his shoes.
Hardy claimed that she endured the abuse for years in order to provide for her daughter. The situation only ended in 2013, when, after reporting Seacrest’s actions to human-resources executives, her employment ended.
“I came from a freelance life, and it was scary,” she told Variety. “It was hard to raise a child and not know where your next check was going to come from, and if that gig was going to take me out of town for two weeks. It was a better deal all the way around, even if I was being abused. It’s sick to say, but it was true.”
Hardy says that she felt like the investigator was “whitewashing” Seacrest’s actions and she claims that he never contacted four witnesses she had referred him to who could corroborate elements of her story. In light of this new information, it is not a surprise that people are not okay with him hosting, including Bellamy Young.
Hence why Young spoke about it during the red carpet premiere of A Wrinkle in Time.
Actress @BellamyYoung doesn’t think Ryan Seacrest should host the #Oscars red carpet in wake of sexual harassment claims (Watch) pic.twitter.com/5qd1OruBgi
— Variety (@Variety) February 27, 2018
“I think this is the time to step aside and let someone of equal talent that is beyond reproach to be in charge” she says in the video and then continues to say, “I know it feels like the rules have changed, so I’m sure people who have been in dominant positions are taken by surprise. Now that someone is asking, do you consent? And we get to say no, people have to accept our no and step aside.”
Some people might say that E! did an investigation and found nothing, but considering this is the same E! that systematically underpaid their female host and then tried to gaslight her, I’m not inclined to believe that they would be willing to get rid of a “draw” like Seacrest over allegations. Regardless, it is time for people who, are as Young says, “beyond reproach” to start getting these opportunities.
(via, Variety; image: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
Published: Feb 27, 2018 03:50 pm