The British actress assures that “a machine” is systematically put in place to discredit actresses when they denounce inappropriate behavior on set.
Kate Beckinsale breaks the silence. In a long video published Monday, December 30 on Instagram, the British actress denounces the way in which Hollywood studios organize themselves, according to her, to silence actresses who complain about inappropriate behavior.
This speech comes in the wake of a legal case which is shaking up the American cinema world, initiated by a complaint from actress Blake Lively revealed in mid-December. The star of Gossip Girl accuses members of the crew of his film Never againand in particular the actor-director Justin Baldoni, of sexual harassment. She also claims to have subsequently been the victim of a smear campaign, which would have been fomented against her precisely to prevent possible revelations. Accusations refuted by the accused.
“I never met (Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni) and I wasn’t on set,” Kate Beckinsale says in the preamble to her video.
“But what I can say is that this case has highlighted the machinery that is set in motion when a woman complains about behavior that she legitimately considers offensive, disturbing, harmful, in this industry. “
The actress of the saga Underworld illustrates his point by evoking his own negative experiences on set. And claims to have often been held responsible when she complained.
Particularly during a shoot on which she was annoyed by her partner's constant drunkenness, which forced her to wait “six hours a day for him to learn his lines”: “The studio's response was to tell me gave me a bike so I could ride it around the set while I waited. After that I was called a s***** and a c*******.”
“I found myself in front of groups of people who were saying, 'How are we going to make her attractive?'” she continues, recalling another shoot. “I was forced to follow such strict diets and sports programs that I lost my periods. That happened twice.”
“I was made to feel like I was the problem”
“At the age of 18, I was touched by someone I really trusted (on set),” she says. “I told the lead actress, who is known for defending women's rights, and she said, 'No, that didn't happen.' I went to another actress, in tears, and I told him: 'This man touched me.' She replied: “No, that’s not true.”
Known for her action films, Kate Beckinsale also claims to have been put in “dangerous combat situations, on two different films with two different actors”: “There is a certain kind of actor who takes pleasure in being legally allowed to hurt a woman. And I was hurt, so much so that there were x-rays to prove it. What happened after that was that I was manipulated, that I was being manipulated. made me feel like it was me problem. I was blamed and ostracized, excluded from team dinners (…) as soon as I mentioned that there was a problem.
“Grateful to Blake Lively”
“I have about 47 million stories like this. It's been happening forever and what's really depressing is seeing lots of men saying, 'It was very different before, now the climate has changed and It’s much better.’ It’s not true. And if you talk about it, you’re supposed to accept that (…).”
“This has to stop,” she concludes. “And I'm grateful to Blake Lively, who shines a light on the fact that this isn't a problem from another age that doesn't happen anymore. It continues. And when it does, a machine is set up to destroy you.”
In recent weeks, many celebrities have shown public support for Blake Lively. And Kate Beckinsale is not the only one to evoke her own experiences in response to this affair.
Thus, actress Abigail Breslin wrote a long text on Sunday, December 29: “Recently, I expressed my fears regarding a male partner and I was described as 'hysterical.' said my fears came from my imagination. Now that I see other examples of this pattern, I realize it's the norm.
Abigail Breslin, who did not mention any names in her message, was the subject of a complaint in 2023 – since removed – from the producer of The Spy Codewhere she plays a role.
The producer accused her of having jeopardized the filming when she had accused Aaron Eckhat, her playing partner, of “aggressive, denigrating and unprofessional” behavior. Accusations that the producer described as “hysterical” and “imaginary”.
