Olivia Munn has called for a ‘zero tolerance’ policy against sexual harassment in a powerful essay, blasting Woody Allen’s comments in which he voiced his fear of a ‘witch hunt’ in a post-Weinstein world.
The actress, 37, detailed how powerful Hollywood figures often go unpunished when they abuse or harass others, and urged ‘heads of studios, bosses and CEOs’ to take action.
Her essay, published in Entertainment Weekly, comes after Allen, 82, said he believes the Weinstein scandal is sad for both the women who have come forward against the producer and for the mogul himself.
Speaking out: Olivia Munn has called for a ‘zero tolerance’ policy against sexual harassment in a powerful essay, detailing how powerful Hollywood figures often go unpunished
‘The whole Harvey Weinstein thing is very sad for everybody involved,’ he told the BBC in October. ‘Tragic for the poor women that were involved, sad for Harvey that [his] life is so messed up.’
Allen, who has himself been accused of abuse by his daughter Dylan Farrow, also explained that he worries the Weinstein scandal and its aftermath will create an atmosphere of fear, especially for men.
He described a potential ‘witch-hunt atmosphere…where every guy in an office who winks at a woman is suddenly having to call a lawyer to defend himself’.
But Munn, who is one of six women who have accused the filmmaker Brett Ratner of acting inappropriately, is having none of it.
Munn told the LA Times last month that Ratner masturbated in front of her in his trailer in 2004, when she was a budding actress. Ratner has disputed the allegations against him.
Response: Her essay comes after Woody Allen, 82, expressed his worries that the Weinstein scandal will create a ‘witch-hunt atmosphere’
Allegations: Munn is one of six women who have accused the filmmaker Brett Ratner of acting inappropriately when she was a budding actress
In her essay, Munn responded to Allen’s remarks by saying that ‘the possibility of an overcorrection is much less worrisome than all of the injustices that led us to this moment’.
‘Woody’s gut instinct to fear what this might become would be better suited to a gut instinct to hold back an urge that could be wrong,’ she added.
The actress said her ‘experience’ with Ratner had convinced her she deserved to be able to pursue her dreams and build her career without enduring harassment or abuse.
She also described Hollywood as a profoundly unequal environment that protects those in power.
‘The system that lets men like Ratner and Allen back in, is the same system that creates disparity,’ she added. ‘It’s tilted to roll back into their favor while the rest of us are saddled with a Sisyphean task.’
Munn then compared Hollywood to ‘a mountain with all of the powerful people positioned at the top’.
‘The rest of us have to push a boulder up this hill while running through numerous gauntlets and any abuse we encounter is just par for the course and accepted,’ she wrote. ‘I know it’s acceptable abuse because no matter how badly certain people f**k up, they fall right back to their position of power while most people have to go to the back of the line and earn their way back up.’
The actress, wrote about harassment, ‘this is not a “women’s” issue, this is an abuse-of-power issue’, then urged ‘heads of studios, bosses and CEOs’ to take action in order to create a safer, more equal work environment for women, for example by enforcing equal pay.
‘We can use this moment to create a lasting shift,’ she added. ‘We should create a zero-tolerance policy with actionable consequences for sexual assault and any other forms of abuse.’