Jane The Virgin’s Justin Baldoni has had his own experiences with sexual harassment in Hollywood, according to his interview with Glamour.
Baldoni alleged that when he was 21 a man claiming to be a well-connected Hollywood producer tried to coerce him into sex while implying he’d offer him help with his acting career in exchange.
The alleged incident happened at a spa, where Baldoni says he was approached by the producer while they were in a hot tub together.
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“When I was 21 or so, I was very new in the business,” he said. “A girlfriend at the time had gotten me a spa certificate… I remember there were hot tubs and steam rooms and all kinds of stuff, and it’s kind of fancier people, wealthier guys. I went and jumped in the hot tub and I saw a guy kind of look over.”
Baldoni continued: “I saw him look over at me, jump out of the other hot tub, and jump in with me, and he said, ‘Oh what do you do?’ And I said, ‘Oh, I’m an actor,’ and he explained, ‘Oh, I’m a producer,’ and he started talking about all of the movies he’s done and all the people he knows.”
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“He’s friends with Clooney, Cheadle, and this person and this person, and he slowly started to try to get me to take off my pants because I had my bathing suit on and he was naked,” the father of two said.
The actor said that as soon as he understood what was happening, he left the hot tub.
He also spoke about how difficult it would’ve been for a woman in the same predicament.
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This wasn’t Baldoni’s only incident. He also alleged that he’s been inappropriately grabbed by “women of power” multiple times.
The Jane The Virgin actor, who plays Rafael Solano, also admitted that he’s been on the giving end of inappropriate conduct towards women.
“I guarantee at some point in my life there is a woman or two that I in some way made uncomfortable by saying something or doing something that was chauvinistic or sexist,” Baldoni said. “And all I can do is say, ‘I’m sorry, I was naive, I was young, I screwed up, and I’ll try to do better.’”
The interview occurred during Baldonoi’s appearance at the TEDWomen conference in New Orleans, where he did a talk on toxic masculinity called “Why I’m Done Trying To Be Man Enough.”
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