Looking back to 2018: The ever-growing list of powerful men accused of sexual misconduct
Since The New York Times published allegations of sexual harassment and assault against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein in October, multiple men in Hollywood and the media have faced allegations ranging from sexual misconduct to rape. This item was originally published in 2018.
BRETT RATNER
Accused by at least six women of sexual harassment. Playboy shelved projects with Ratner and Ratner stepped away from Warner Bros. related activities. He denies the allegations.
RUSSELL SIMMONS
Def Jam Records founder Russell Simmons is accused by model Keri Claussen Khalighi of coercing her to perform a sex act and later penetrating her without her consent in his New York apartment in 1991. Also accused by Sidney Lumet's daughter of taking her to his New York apartment in 1991 against her will and having sex with her. In response to Jenny Lumet's allegations, Simmons has stepped away from his companies. Simmons has also disputed Claussen Khalighi's account, saying the relationship was consensual.
ROBERT KNEPPER
Accused by one woman of sexual assault. He denies the allegations.
JANN WENNER
Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner is accused by one man of sexual harassment. He says he did not intend to make the accuser uncomfortable.
DUSTIN HOFFMAN
Accused by woman of sexual harassing her in 1985 when she was 17. He has apologized for his behavior. A second actress has come forward to accuse Hoffman of allegations of sexual harassment, calling his conduct "a horrific, demoralizing and abusive experience."
MARK HALPERIN
Journalist Mark Halperin is accused of harassing about 12 women while at ABC News. Book contract terminated. Fired from job at NBC News. He has denied some of the allegations.
JEFFREY TAMBOR
Two women — an actress on his show "Transparent" and his assistant — allege sexual misconduct. He denies the allegation, saying in a statement that he has "never been a predator — ever." Tambor said this week he doesn't see how he can return to the Amazon series.
NICK CARTER
Singer Nick Carter is accused by pop singer Melissa Schuman of raping her approximately 15 years ago. Carter has denied her allegations.
RICHARD DREYFUSS
One woman alleges sexual harassment. He denies the allegation.
GARY GODDARD
Producer Gary Goddard, in his North Hollywood office on January 15, 2015. "ER" actor Anthony Edwards has accused Goddard of molesting him when he was 12. Spokesman Sam Singer said in a statement issued Nov. 10, 2017, that the producer unequivocally denies Edwards' claims.
ISRAEL HOROVITZ
Playwright Israel Horovitz is accused by nine women of sexual misconduct, including forcible kissing and rape. He tells The New York Times his recollection of the events is different from the women's accounts and apologized "with all my heart to any woman who has ever felt compromised by my actions."
ANDREW KREISBERG
Showrunner Andrew Kreisberg is accused by 19 women of sexual harassment and inappropriate touching. The "Supergirl" and "Arrow" showrunner has been fired by Warner Bros. Television Group. He told Variety he has made comments on women's appearances and clothes "but they were not sexualized."
JOHN LASSETER
Pixar and Disney Animation chief John Lasseter is accused by several women of unwanted touching and has announced he is taking a six-month leave of absence. He has acknowledged some "missteps" with employees and apologized for any behavior that made workers uncomfortable.
TOM SIZEMORE
Actor Tom Sizemore is accused of groping an 11-year-old actress in 2003. Utah prosecutors declined to file charges, citing witness and evidence problems. He denies the allegation.
GEORGE TAKEI
One man alleges sexual assault. He denies the allegation.
JAMES LEVINE
New York's Metropolitan Opera says it will investigate allegations that its longtime conductor, Levine, sexually abused a teenager in the mid-1980s. Details of the police report were first reported Saturday, Dec. 2, 2017, on the New York Post website. Levine, 74, stepped down as music director of the Met in April 2016.
DANNY MASTERSON
Netflix says it has written Danny Masterson out of the comedy "The Ranch" with Los Angeles police investigating sexual assault claims against him that date back to the 2000s. He has denied the allegations by three women that they were assaulted by him.
MARIO BATALI
Mario Batali is stepping down from daily operations at his restaurant empire following reports of sexual misconduct by the celebrity chef over a period of at least 20 years. In a prepared statement sent to The Associated Press, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017, Batali said the complaints match up with his past behavior.
BRYAN SINGER
Director Bryan Singer has been accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old boy at a party more than a decade ago. The lawsuit filed in Seattle claims Singer demanded sex from Cesar Sanchez-Guzman during a 2003 yacht party. In a statement Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, attorney Andrew Brettler said Singer "categorically denies these allegations and will vehemently defend this lawsuit to the very end."
MORGAN SPURLOCK
Declaring "I am part of the problem," Morgan Spurlock confessed in an online post Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017, to sexual harassment, infidelity and said a woman accused him of rape in college.
BEN VEREEN
Tony Award-winner Ben Vereen is apologizing to female actresses for "inappropriate conduct" while he directed a production of the musical "Hair" in Florida three years ago. The apology on Twitter comes a day after the New York Daily News reported several actresses at The Venice Theatre alleged sexual misconduct by Vereen, including unwanted kissing, inviting women to join him naked in his hot tub and making demeaning and degrading comments.
PAUL HAGGIS
A December 2017 civil lawsuit charging filmmaker Paul Haggis with rape has prompted three other women to come forward with their own accusations, including a publicist who says he forced her to perform oral sex, then raped her. Haggis has denied the allegations in the lawsuit, and when asked about the new accusations, his lawyer said, "He didn't rape anybody."
JAMES FRANCO
Facing accusations by an actress and a filmmaker over alleged sexual misconduct, James Franco said on CBS’ “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018, the things he’s heard aren’t accurate but he supports people coming out “because they didn’t have a voice for so long.”
AZIZ ANSARI
Aziz Ansari said in a statement Sunday, Jan. 14, 2018, that he apologized last year when a woman who has accused him of sexual assault told him about her discomfort during a sexual encounter in his apartment he said he believed to be consensual. The woman, identified as a 23-year-old photographer in an interview with Babe.net, says she was furious when she saw Ansari was wearing a "Time's Up" pin while accepting a Golden Globe on Jan. 7.
MICHAEL DOUGLAS
A woman who worked for actor Michael Douglas in the late 1980s says he fondled himself in front of her, an allegation the actor has vigorously denied. Journalist and author Susan Braudy appeared Friday, Jan. 19, 2018 on NBC's "Today" show. Earlier in January 2018, Douglas said he anticipated an upcoming report containing allegations and called it a "complete lie, fabrication."
R. KELLY
Kelly has faced intense scrutiny in the last year after women have accused him of sexual coercion and physical abuse. He has denied the charges.
RYAN SEACREST
Seacrest's former "E! News" stylist, Suzie Hardy, alleges multiple instances of sexual harassment and abuse.
SCOTT BAIO
Baio has denied a claim made by his former “Charles in Charge” co-star Nicole Eggert that something inappropriate happened between the two when she was a minor. Eggert tweeted Saturday. Jan. 27, 2018 to ask Baio about what happened in his garage when she was a minor.
DAVID COPPERFIELD
Copperfield has declared his support for the Me Too movement in a lengthy statement online in the wake of allegations that he drugged and sexually assaulted a woman in 1988, when she was just 17.
ED WESTICK
The former "Gossip Girl" star was accused by multiple women of sexual assault. Westwick has denied the allegations.
ANDY DICK
Actor Andy Dick has been accused of unwanted groping, kissing, licking, and sexual propositioning.
BEN AFFLECK
Several women have accused Affleck of groping.
CASEY AFFLECK
Two women who worked on Casey Affleck’s film “I’m Still Here” filed sexual harassment lawsuits against him in 2010. Both claims were settled out of court for an undisclosed amount in 2010. Affleck has repeatedly denied the allegations.
MORGAN FREEMAN
Freeman says he likes to compliment people to make them feel at ease around him but that he has never sexually assaulted women. The Academy Award-winning actor is fighting back against charges of bad behavior made by multiple women in a CNN report this week. He said in a statement late Friday, May 25, 2018, that the report has devastated him and that "it is not right to equate horrific incidents of sexual assault with misplaced compliments or humor."
CHRIS HARDWICK
Chris Hardwick's cable talk show is on hold and he has withdrawn as moderator of AMC and BBC America's Comic-Con panels, AMC Networks said Saturday, June 16, 2018. The company said it had a positive working relationship with the host and producer but takes seriously what it calls "troubling" allegations by his former girlfriend, Chloe Dykstra.
In late July AMC said he would be back with "Talking Dead" and "Talking with Chris Hardwick" following a review of the incident.
In announcing its decision, AMC said it was the "appropriate step" after interviewing a number of people in connection with the allegations against Hardwick.
GERARD DEPARDIEU
A French judicial official says rape and sexual assault accusations against actor Gerard Depardieu are the subject of a preliminary investigation it was reported on Thursday, Aug. 30, 2018. Depardieu's lawyer, Herve Temime, said on France's BFM TV that the actor "absolutely denies any rape, any sexual assault, any crime."
TAVIS SMILEY
PBS says it has suspended distribution of Tavis Smiley’s talk show after an independent investigation uncovered “multiple, credible allegations” of misconduct by its host.
MATT LAUER
"Today" host Matt Lauer is accused by at least three women of sexual misconduct, including inappropriate sexual behavior that NBC News says started at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and continued after that. Lauer has been fired from NBC News. He has expressed sorrow and regret about the pain he has caused and says some of the accusations about him are untrue or have been mischaracterized.
GARRISON KEILLOR
Former "A Prairie Home Companion" host Garrison Keillor is accused by one woman of inappropriate behavior. He was fired by Minnesota Public Radio. He has told The Associated Press he was fired over "a story that I think is more interesting and more complicated than the version MPR heard," and told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he put his hand on a woman's bare back in an attempt to console her.
GERALDO RIVERA
Journalist Geraldo Rivera is accused by Bette Midler of groping her in the early 1970s when Rivera was sent to interview her. He has not yet responded to Midler's renewal of the allegation, which she made in a 1991 interview with Barbara Walters.
CHARLIE ROSE
PBS and CBS host Charlie Rose is accused by several women of unwanted sexual advances, groping and grabbing women, walking naked in front of them or making lewd phone calls. He has apologized for his behavior, but has questioned the accuracy of some of the accounts.
CHRIS MATTHEWS
A spokesman for MSNBC on Sunday, Dec. 17, 2017 confirmed a report that a staffer at the news channel nearly two decades ago had been paid and left her job after she complained she was sexually harassed by "Hardball" host Chris Matthews.
LEON WIESELTIER
New Republic editor Leon Wieseltier is accused of sexually harassing numerous women. Removed from the masthead of The Atlantic magazine. He has apologized for his behavior.
LES MOONVES
CBS Chief Les Moonves resigned Sunday, Sept. 9, 2018, just hours after six more women accused the veteran television executive of sexual misconduct.
The resignation is effective immediately, CBS said in a statement posted on its website Sunday night.
JEFF FAGER
CBS News on Wednesday fired "60 Minutes" top executive Jeff Fager, who has been under investigation following reports that he groped women at parties and tolerated an abusive workplace.
The network news president, David Rhodes, said Fager's firing was "not directly related" to the allegations against him, but because he violated company policy. Fager said it was because of a text message he sent to a CBS News reporter who was covering the story about him.
RAUL BOCANEGRA
California state Rep. Raul Bocanegra is accused by multiple women of groping them or kissing them against their will. He has resigned his seat, and says he hopes to clear his name and has said, "While I am not guilty of any such crimes, I am admittedly not perfect."
STEPHEN BITTEL, JACK LATVALA
Florida Democratic Party Chairman Stephen Bittel is accused of sexually inappropriate comments and behavior toward a number of women, Bittel resigned. Meanwhile, Democratic state Sen. Jeff Clemens resigned after a report that he had an extramarital affair with a lobbyist, and Republican state Sen. Jack Latvala is being investigated by the Senate over allegations of harassment and groping. Latvala has denied the allegations.
ROY MOORE
U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore (R.-Ala.) is accused of sexually assaulting two women decades ago when they were teenagers; about a half-dozen other women have accused Moore of inappropriate conduct. The former state Supreme Court chief justice denies the allegations. He has rebuffed pressure from national Republican leaders to step aside; the state GOP is standing by him.
DONALD TRUMP
Sixteen women have come forward with a range of accusations against Trump, many after the release of the "Access Hollywood" tape last October in which Trump was caught on an open microphone bragging about groping women. One woman, Summer Zevos, a contestant on Trump's reality show, "The Apprentice," sued, contending that Trump's denials of her accusations amount to false and defamatory statements.
JOHN CONYERS
U.S. Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) is accused of sexual harassment toward staffers in his office, and has settled one claim of harassment. He has denied the allegations, even the one he settled. He resigned from Congress on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2017 after a nearly 53-year career, becoming the first Capitol Hill politician to lose his job in the torrent of sexual misconduct allegations sweeping through the nation's workplaces.
AL FRANKEN
U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) is accused of forcibly kissing Los Angeles radio anchor Leeann Tweeden while rehearsing for a 2006 USO tour; Franken also was photographed with his hands over her breasts as she slept. He also has been accused by three other women of touched their buttocks, and another woman told CNN that Franken had cupped her right breast when she stood next to him for a photo in December 2003. Franken has apologized, though hasn't admitted to groping or other inappropriate touching. He reluctantly announced Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017 he's resigning from Congress.
TRENT FRANKS
Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., said in a statement that he never physically intimidated, coerced or attempted to have any sexual contact with any member of his congressional staff. Instead, he says, the dispute resulted from a discussion of surrogacy. A former aide to Franks has told The Associated Press the congressman repeatedly pressed her to carry his child, at one point offering her $5 million to act as a surrogate.
GEORGE H.W. BUSH
Former President George H.W. Bush is accused of patting seven women below the waist while posing for photos with them in recent years, well after he left office. The 93-year-old Republican has issued repeated apologies through a spokesman "to anyone he has offended," with the spokesman noting that the former president uses a wheelchair and that his arm sinks below people's waists when they take photos with him.
BLAKE FARENTHOLD
The House Ethics Committee said Dec. 7 it is expanding its investigation into sexual harassment allegations against Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Texas. The committee said it will investigate whether Farenthold sexually harassed a former member of his staff and retaliated against her for complaining. The committee also said the panel would review allegations that Farenthold made inappropriate statements to other members of his official staff.
He's shown here with House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin during a mock swearing in ceremony on Capitol Hill in Washington.
DAN SCHOEN AND TONY CORNISH
Two Minnesota state lawmakers — Democratic Sen. Dan Schoen, left, and Republican Rep. Tony Cornish — said they would resign after they were accused of misdeeds that ranged from groping colleagues to persistent unwanted sexual advances and sexting.
MICHAEL FALLON
British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon is accused of inappropriate advances on two women, the Conservative resigned. Sexual harassment and assault allegations have also emerged against a number of other U.K. political figures. Labour Party legislator Carl Sargeant is believed to have taken his own life after harassment allegations cost him his post as the Welsh government's Cabinet secretary for communities and children. He had asked for an independent inquiry to clear his name. Also, Labour Party member Ivan Lewis has been suspended over an allegation of sexual misconduct; Lewis disputed the account but apologized if his behavior had been "unwelcome or inappropriate."
JEFF HOOVER
Kentucky House Speaker Jeff Hoover stepped down as speaker this month after news surfaced that the Republican had settled a sexual harassment claim from a GOP caucus staffer. Hoover denied the harassment allegation but said he sent consensual yet inappropriate text messages. He remains in the Legislature.
ALEX KOZINSKI
Judge Alex Kozinski, of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, announced his immediate retirement Monday, Dec. 18, 2017, days after women alleged he subjected them to inappropriate sexual conduct or comments. Kozinski said in a statement Monday that a battle over the accusations would not be good for the judiciary.
RUBEN KIHUEN
First-term congressman Ruben Kihuen announced Saturday, Dec. 16, 2017, that he won’t seek re-election but said he’ll serve out his current term as he continued to deny allegations of sexual harassment.
ALEX GILADY
International Olympic Committee member Alex Gilady is accused by two women of rape and by two others of inappropriate conduct. Gilady denied the rape accusations, said he didn't recall one of the other allegations, but acknowledged a claim he'd propositioned a woman during a job interview 25 years ago was "mainly correct." He stepped down as president of an Israeli broadcasting company he founded. The IOC has said it is looking into the allegations.
DANNY JORDAAN
Former South African soccer association president Danny Jordaan is accused by former member of parliament Jennifer Ferguson of raping her in 1993. Jordaan denies the accusation.
LARRY NASSAR
Dr. Larry Nassar, a sports doctor accused of molesting girls while working for USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University, pleaded guilty to multiple charges of sexual assault and will face at least 25 years in prison. Olympians Aly Raisman, McKayla Maroney and Gabby Douglas say they were victims.
In a third case, Nassar will be sentenced in federal court on Dec. 7 for possessing child pornography. Meanwhile, more than 100 women and girls are suing him.
JERRY RICHARDSON
The Carolina Panthers are investigating workplace misconduct allegations against founder and owner Jerry Richardson. The team said Friday, Dec. 15, 2017 former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles is overseeing the investigation by a Los Angeles-based law firm.
STEVE WYNN
Casino mogul Wynn resigned as chairman and chief executive of Wynn Resorts in February after sexual misconduct allegations surfaced against him.
GEOFFREY RUSH
"Orange Is the New Black" actress Yael Stone alleged actor Geoffrey Rush engaged in sexually inappropriate behavior when they starred in "The Diary of a Madman" in 2010.
Speaking to The New York Times , the 33-year-old said Rush danced naked in front of her in their dressing room, used a mirror to watch her while she showered and sent her occasionally erotic texts.
MICHAEL WEATHERLY
CBS reached a $9.5 million confidential settlement last year with actress Eliza Dushku after on-set sexual comments from Michael Weatherly, star of the network's show "Bull," made her uncomfortable when she was beginning a run as a recurring character.
CBS confirmed the settlement Thursday night in a statement to The Associated Press.
Dushku was written off the show after complaining about Weatherly's comments on her appearance and jokes involving sex and rape made in front of cast and crew in March of 2017, according to the New York Times , which first reported the settlement.
"The allegations in Ms. Dushku's claims are an example that, while we remain committed to a culture defined by a safe, inclusive and respectful workplace, our work is far from done," the CBS statement said. "The settlement of these claims reflects the projected amount that Ms. Dushku would have received for the balance of her contract as a series regular, and was determined in a mutually agreed upon mediation process at the time."
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