Paul Marciano, the co-founder of Guess, has recently released a statement in response to Kate Upton's allegations that he sexually (and emotionally) harassed her, denying her claims. Marciano insisted that the accusations are false and that he has never been alone with Kate Upton, let alone behaved inappropriately around her.
Upton's initial statement—a tweet, and subsequent Instagram post—did not detail any specific incidents of assault, but she expressed her disappointment in the brand, and noted that Marciano "shouldn't be allowed to use his power in the industry to sexually and emotionally harass women," adding the #MeToo hashtag to her posts.
Marciano's response claims that Upton has been "working with others for some time" to defame him and that she "will claim that I groped her among other things." He insists that her allegations are being used in order to exact some sort of revenge against him, after the fashion brand cut ties with Upton, TMZ reports.
In his full statement to TMZ, he asserts that he supports the #MeToo movement, but he "will not stand by and let (my) reputation be tarnished." Marciano seems to be confident in his innocence, but while others join in in support of Upton, only time will tell what the state of his career will be going forward.
