“One Tree Hill’s” Hilarie Burton says Ben Affleck once groped her
After Ben Affleck spoke out against producer Harvey Weinstein, who currently faces several sexual harassment and assault allegations, a social media thread revealed Affleck groped actress Hilarie Burton on an episode of TRL back in the day. Sadly, back then, Burton was put in a position where she had to laugh off the incident.
In his statement, Affleck noted that he was “saddened and angry” that a man like Weinstein, who he has worked with in the past, used his clout to “intimidate, sexually harass and manipulate many women over decades.” While this sounds like a solid statement in support of the multiple victims, actress Rose McGowan was quick to call Affleck out.
— Ben Affleck (@BenAffleck) October 10, 2017
https://twitter.com/udfredirect/status/917844865806778368
McGowan stated that Affleck knew about Weinstein all along, thus making his statement pretty empty. And to support claims that Affleck was complicit in Hollywood’s history of sexual misconduct, an appearance he made on TRL was brought to light. false
Burton herself weighed in on the moment with a chilling tweet.
I didn't forget.
— Hilarie Burton Morgan (@HilarieBurton) October 10, 2017
false
Seriously, thank you for that. I was a kid.
— Hilarie Burton Morgan (@HilarieBurton) October 11, 2017
While Burton is known best for One Tree Hill, she served as an MTV VJ and co-host of TRL for a few years in the early 2000s. During her interview with Affleck, he groped her breast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzcanJigO6U?feature=oembed
Not only was Burton subjected to this inappropriate behavior, but she had to relive it in a joking manner for a TRL special.
"He wraps his arm around me and comes over and tweaks my left boob," Burton said. "I'm just like, 'What are you doing?'"
This isn’t the only footage of Affleck acting inappropriately. While trying to promote Jersey Girl, Affleck tells the interviewer in the following video that she should do the interview topless, and that she should have “that rack on display.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMq6xDHBKwQ?feature=oembed
If you feel uncomfortable watching that, you’re not alone.
This kind of behavior needs to stop. Women shouldn’t have to tolerate moments where they’re put in awkward, uncomfortable, and unsafe circumstances. While we’re glad that celebrities like Affleck are being called out for their actions — but we’re more sad that they went unreported for so long.
