For six seasons, Hilarie Burton played Peyton Sawyer, the female lead on “One Tree Hill,” a Warner Bros. teen drama created by Mark Schwahn. For the first two seasons, Burton said, she struggled against Schwahn’s efforts to gratuitously sexualize her character — fights that earned her a reputation for being “difficult.”

But after the show’s second season, according to Burton, inappropriate behavior by Schwahn that she and her costars dismissed as social awkwardness grew more intense.

“Things took a turn in season three,” Burton said. “That’s when Mark decided that I was his muse.”

Speaking to Variety, Burton recalled years of harassment and assault that she alleges Schwahn perpetrated against her and other women on the show. She claimed that Schwahn twice forced himself on her, kissing her on the mouth without warning and against her will. She said Schwahn touched her inappropriately while in the presence of his wife. All in all, she described a culture on “One Tree Hill” in which Schwahn pitted women against each other, was verbally abusive, and spread false rumors about physical relationships he claimed to have had with female cast members.

In an interview with Variety the day after the letter was published, Burton described in detail her experience working with Schwahn, who was showrunner on all nine seasons of the series — which aired first on the WB, then the CW. A former MTV veejay, Burton said Schwahn positioned himself as a mentor; pushing her character to the forefront, allowing her to sit in on production meetings, and offering support for her dream of starting a record label. “I realize now that I was being groomed as bait,” she said.

Burton described a pattern of behavior in which Schwahn would allegedly manipulate female cast members by playing them against each other — and that he would often encourage new female actors on the show to develop social relationships with Burton as a way to draw them into his orbit. Actress Danneel Ackles, who joined the series in season three, said that Schwahn encouraged her to develop a friendship with Burton, telling Ackles (née Harris), “Hilarie’s one of the good guys. Hang out with her.”

Burton said that she received multiple late-night phone calls from Schwahn during production of season three in which Schwahn, who was married, tearfully declared his love for Ackles, with whom he claimed to be having a physical relationship. (Ackles told Variety that she never had such a relationship with Schwahn.) Burton said that, on one such phone call, she reprimanded Schwahn and told him that she did not want to be his confidant regarding the alleged affair. The next day, she said, she received flowers with an unsigned note that read “Thank you for being my secret keeper.”

Russell Simmons Is Being Accused Of Sexually Assaulting A 17-Year-Old Model While Brett Ratner Watched

Def Jam founder Russell Simmons and director Brett Ratner are now facing new allegations of sexual assault and misconduct, with Simmons being accused of forcing himself on a 17-year-old model while Ratner watched. Keri Claussen Khalighi alleges that she met the two men at a casting call and accompanied them to dinner in 1991, soon going back to Simmons’ apartment to watch a music video the two had been working on — Ratner was a music video director at the time.

Related Links:

Director Brett Ratner Has Been Accused Of Sexual Harassment By Six Women
Gal Gadot Reportedly Is Threatening To Pull Out Of ‘Wonder Woman 2’ Unless Brett Ratner Is Removed



It was there that she claims Simmons began to make “aggressive sexual advances” as he proceeded to take off her clothes according to the LA Times:

“I looked over at Brett and said ‘help me’ and I’ll never forget the look on his face,” she recalled. “In that moment, the realization fell on me that they were in it together.”

Khalighi said that Simmons, who was then about twice her age, tried to force her to have intercourse. “I fought it wildly,” she said. He eventually relented and coerced her to perform oral sex, she alleged. “I guess I just acquiesced.”

Ratner, meanwhile, “just sat there and watched,” she said.

Feeling “disgusting,” Khalighi said she went to take a shower. Minutes later, she alleged, Simmons walked up behind her in the shower and briefly penetrated her without her consent. She said she jerked away, then he left. “It hurt so much.”

Simmons and Ratner both denied the allegations, with the Def Jam mogul confirming with the LA Times that he shared an encounter with Khalighi, but that it was with her “full consent and participation.” Ratner also claimed he had to memory of being asked for helped and denied seeing her “protest” through a statement from his attorney.

A former assistant of Simmons provided his view of the situation in a signed statement provided to the LA Times by the Def Jam mogul’s attorney:

Anthony “Mac” McNair, who said he saw Khalighi go to Simmons’ bedroom “on her own volition and without any coercion or undue influence.” McNair said the group also went out to a nightclub later that evening. McNair said he saw Khalighi at Simmons’ house the next day — an assertion affirmed by Simmons — and did not notice “any visible signs of distress or that anything improper had occurred.” Simmons’ attorney provided two additional anonymous statements from people who said Khalighi showed no signs of distress during the weekend.

Khalighi says she felt the need to go public with her story after the initial LA Times report on Ratner’s behavior alleged by Olivia Munn, Natasha Henstridge, and four other actresses. She contacted Simmons according to the LA Times, urged him to disclose the encounter, claimed that he did not deny her claims before apologizing.

She also reportedly confronted Ratner with her story 15 years ago after running into him in LA:

“He listened and he un-defensively acknowledged the truth of what had happened,” Khalighi recalled. “He said he was young and stupid and blinded by Russell’s sway over him.”

Publicly, Ratner and Simmons are currently denying the allegations against them, something Khalighi says prompted her to speak out in contrast to them asserting “the women who come forward are liars.” Ratner was forced to cut ties with Warner Bros over the allegations against him and faced criticism for his possible future involvement in the Wonder Woman films.

The LA Times report extensively covers other allegations against Ratner and can be read here.

(Via LA Times)

The fault lies not with them, but with men who abuse their power and privilege.

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