NEW YORK — Judd Apatow is not wavering on his criticism of comedian Bill Cosby, who’s been accused of sexual misconduct by more than two dozen women over four decades.
While attending the world premiere of his latest film, Trainwreck, in New York Tuesday night, the 47-year filmmaker explained why his crusade is so important to him.
“I just thought that nobody was talking about it, and that was very sad that he hurt so many people,” Apatow said. “Look at all these women finding the courage to say ‘Something really terrible happened to me’ and most of it fell on deaf ears. I thought we shouldn’t let this disappear.”
Numerous women publicly accused Cosby of sexual assault late last year and many of them alleged that he drugged them before sex. Cosby denied the allegations.
Last week, a Pennsylvania judge unsealed a 2005 deposition by Cosby in which the 78-year-old said he obtained Quaaludes with the intent of giving them to young women he wanted to have sex with. Cosby admitted that he gave the sedative to at least one woman.
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Apatow said he hopes the latest evidence will change more than just the perception of Cosby’s defenders. He hopes it will encourage people to listen to the accusers.
“I’m glad that more information has come out and now people understand the terrible things he did and realize that we do need to stand up for women because if we don’t they won’t come forward,” he said.
Apatow also has taken to Twitter to share his outrage.
He said it took courage for the victims to come forward and say they’d been assaulted. But he feels they were mostly ignored – and in some cases doubted by celebrities like Whoopi Goldberg.
Goldberg has been one of Cosby’s most ardent supporters, and after the court documents were released last week, she said on The View that she believed Cosby was innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. She has since retreated from that position, conceding on Tuesday that “all of the information that’s out there kind of points” to Cosby’s guilt.
Cosby has not been charged with a crime, and the statute of limitations has run out on most of the accusations.
– with files by David Bauder of The Associated Press
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