Penn Badgley has said he is “very troubled” over the sexual harassment allegations against his You co-star Chris D’Elia.
The actor spoke to the Los Angeles Times about how individuals who perpetrate crimes of sexual assault “need to be brought to justice.”
“It did affect me deeply. I was very troubled by it. I am very troubled by it,” the star claimed, “I don’t know Chris. I know that, if there’s anything we need to do in this age, it’s to believe women.”
“One thing that our culture tends to do quite systematically and methodically is to revel in identifying villains so that the system can remain evil,” the actor continued, “So those individuals ideally would be brought to justice. Ideally there would be less of those individuals.”
The 33-year-old admitted it was “disturbing” to think that the show You could contribute to the problem of toxic masculinity.
“The idea that a show like ours would indirectly, unwittingly be a haven for people who are abusive is disturbing. It’s very disturbing…there’s only so much we can take responsibility for.”
Many accused the stand-up comedian of sending inappropriate messages and asking for nude photos.
The 40-year-old starred alongside Penn in the hit Netflix show You, where played the character of Henderson – a comedian who was later outed as a pedophile.
“I know I have said and done things that might have offended people during my career, but I have never knowingly pursued any underage women at any point,” he told TMZ
“All of my relationships have been both legal and consensual and I have never met or exchanged any inappropriate photos with the people who have tweeted about me.
“That being said, I really am truly sorry. I was a dumb guy who ABSOLUTELY let myself get caught up in my lifestyle. That’s MY fault. I own it.”
“I’ve been reflecting on this for some time now and I promise I will continue to do better,” he added.
On this week’s episode of #GossChats – Ali Ryan chats to Aoife Walsh.
The former Miss Ireland opens up about postponing her wedding, being apart from her fiancé, and the lessons she has learned during lockdown.
#GossChats is sponsored by top Irish aesthetic clinic Haus of JeJuve.
