Content Warning: This article discusses sexual assault, and rape. If you or someone you know are affected by the following story, you are not alone. To speak to someone, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
The #MeToo train shows no signs of slowing down, and the latest celebrity to be called out for an alleged sexual assault is Entourage star Kevin Connolly.
The Daily Beast has reported that former assistant costume designer Gracie Cox, who worked on Connolly’s directorial debut The Gardener of Eden, has come forward with allegations that the actor raped her at the film’s wrap party in 2005 after he reportedly led her to a deserted VIP area of Manhattan’s Butter lounge.
“We were at the party and I don’t think I’d been there for more than an hour or so when Kevin approached me and asked if I’d go with him for a smoke,” said Cox, who 29 years old at the time.
“As soon as we were alone in that area, he started to kiss me,” Cox explained. “I didn’t know how to respond – but before I could even think about what to do about it, he pulled me into one of those little side (booths), and pulled down my pants, and turned me around, and within no time was inside of me. I was just in shock.”
She continued, “There was not really a chance in my mind to object or resist. It just happened really fast. I froze and was in shock. Nothing like that had ever happened to me before in any way, shape or form. I was completely caught off-guard.”
“He took a pillow off of a couch, threw it at me, and told me to ‘clean myself up.’ He then told me that he was going to leave and to wait a few minutes because he didn’t want anyone to see us together,” Cox added.
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Following Cox revealing her ordeal to the public, the Entourage star replied via a lengthy statement released by his spokesperson, in which he claimed the act was “consensual”.
“Kevin strongly supports victims of sexual assault and believes their claims should always be heard. As someone who has worked in this industry for four decades, he has treated people with nothing but respect and has maintained a stellar reputation,” lawyer Marty Singer said in a statement.
“Therefore, he was completely shocked to learn of the allegations made by Gracie Cox from a wrap party in 2005.”
The statement concluded: “Kevin acknowledges the lack of professionalism on his part, but he adamantly denies that it was anything other than a mutual consensual encounter.”
