Morgan Freeman Responds to Multiple Sexual Harassment Allegations

One day after being accused of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior, Morgan Freeman has released another statement denying the allegations.

“I am devastated that 80 years of my life is at risk of being undermined, in the blink of an eye, by Thursday’s media reports. All victims of assault and harassment deserve to be heard. And we need to listen to them. But it is not right to equate horrific incidents of sexual assault with misplaced compliments or humor. I admit that I am someone who feels a need to try to make women—and men—feel appreciated and at ease around me,” said in a statement to E! News on Friday.

“As a part of that, I would often try to joke with and compliment women, in what I thought was a light-hearted and humorous way. Clearly I was not always coming across the way I intended. And that is why I apologized Thursday and will continue to apologize to anyone I might have upset, however unintentionally. But I also want to be clear: I did not create unsafe work environments. I did not assault women. I did not offer employment or advancement in exchange for sex. Any suggestion that I did so is completely false.”

After a month-long investigation, CNN published a new report on Thursday in which 16 people have come forward to share allegations against the 80-year-old Oscar winner. Eight of those people are women who are accusing Freeman of harassment or inappropriate behavior.

Of those eight women, two said they were victims of “unwanted touching” by the actor. One was a production assistant on the Freeman, Alan Arkin and Michael Caine movie Going in Stylein 2015. The unnamed woman told CNN she endured “several months of harassment” during the production of the movie.

– ENews