A woman who worked for actor Michael Douglas over 30 years ago is reportedly alleging that he used "colorful language" in her presence, blackballed her from the industry, and masturbated in front of her. The accusation has not been published yet, but Douglas has already responded to it in an interview with Deadline.
The two-time Oscar winner said that he caught wind of the allegations when Variety and The Hollywood Reporter contacted his attorney seeking comment "right before the holidays." He decided to get some control of the narrative by speaking out before the claims got published. Douglas—who says he hasn't contacted the employee since firing her over 30 years ago—apologized for using "colorful language," saying none of it was directed at her, and strongly denied that he masturbated in front of her, calling the claim "a complete lie, fabrication, no truth to it whatsoever."
"I had the choice of waiting for a story to come out, one that will clearly get picked up by other newspapers and magazines, and then I have to sit there and try to defend myself," he said. "Or, try to share with the public, a little ahead of the story, my thoughts and concerns. Again, I am sorry if I used coarse language with my friends. But this is really debilitating. It can have a large effect on my career. And also, I think it really sends a message out."
Douglas went on to state that he's worked with women his entire life without issue and noted that he was a strong supporter of the #MeToo movement that's been standing against Hollywood's sexual harassment and assault. The 73-year-old also said that he went as far as looking up who the woman was and concluded that she's a blogger, leading him to believe that "she either has or is trying to get a book deal." Douglas felt that this case could be a cautionary tale, hoping that "we will be careful about accusing, and being accused."
Douglas said that if he did do something that was wrongful, he'd admit to it: "I’d confess to anything I thought I was responsible for. And it was most certainly not masturbating in front of this woman. This reeks. I would have respected if she had reached out to me any time over these years, to share her pain or concerns and I would have been the first one to respond."
Read Douglas' preemptive defense here.
