Dustin Hoffman has apologised over claims he harrassed at actress on a movie set in the 80s. Photo/Getty
Dustin Hoffman has apologised over claims he harrassed at actress on a movie set in the 80s. Photo/Getty
Dustin Hoffman has apologised for allegedly sexually harassing an intern on the set of a big budget 80s film.
The 80-year-old actor has been accused by Anna Graham Hunter, who was working on his Death of a Salesman set in 1985, of making unwanted advances and saying vulgar things to her.
Hoffman says he "feels terrible" that he might have upset anyone and insisted the alleged incident was "not reflective" of who he is.
He said in a statement: "I have the utmost respect for women and feel terrible that anything I might have done could have put her in an uncomfortable situation.
She wrote in her introduction: "When I was a senior in high school in New York City, interning as a production assistant on the set of the Death of a Salesman TV film, he asked me to give him a foot massage my first day on set; I did.
"He was openly flirtatious, he grabbed my ass, he talked about sex to me and in front of me."
In the piece, Hunter branded Hoffman a "lech" in her notes written after just 10 days on set.
She wrote: "Today, I realised some things about this business that scare me. First of all, Dustin's a lech. I'm completely disillusioned. After Tootsie, I thought I wanted to marry him...
"Today, when I was walking Dustin to his limo, he felt my ass four times. I hit him each time, hard, and told him he was a dirty old man. He took off his hat and pointed to his head (shaved for the part) and said, 'No, I'm a dirty young man, I have a full head of hair'."
In her notes from a few days later Hunter detailed how she walked off the set following a "gross" remark from the Hollywood star.
She wrote: "Today this business got scarier. Or at least less appealing. This morning when I asked Dustin what he wanted for breakfast, he said something that beat even his lows. It was worse than anything anyone has ever said to me on the street. It was so gross I couldn't say anything. I just turned around and walked out."
And she revealed she had been urged to "sacrifice" her values and brush off the attention.
She continued: "But the bad news is Brenda* [my supervisor] said it's too bad it became an issue. Hell, I didn't make it an issue. He did.
"She said that for the sake of the production we have to sacrifice some of our values and just let it roll over our heads.
"She said we should try to have a sense of humour and just giggle and slap his hands or something. But that's when I feel the cheapest, like, 'Oh, she really likes it'."
At the end of her piece, the actress discussed her conflicting feelings towards the Tootsie star but concluded that he is a "predator".
