Ellen Pompeo says director accused of sexual assault asked her to get naked in a movie
The 'Grey's Anatomy' actress recounted a meeting she had with director James Toback to USA Today.
In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal, many women in Hollywood and other industries have come forward to detail their own stories of sexual harassment and assault. Everett native Ellen Pompeo, the star of Grey’s Anatomy, recently shared her own story about a meeting she had with director James Toback, who has been accused of sexual harassment by more than 238 women in the last month.
In a story published Monday, Pompeo told USA Today that she met with Toback in public early in her career, and she brought along a male friend. As soon as that friend departed, the director asked if Pompeo would appear naked in a film.
“It was held in a public place and I brought a man — my friend Tony,” Pompeo told USA Today. “And he didn’t like that at all. And I could tell that. I could tell instantly that he was, like, no good. The minute my friend left, he asked me if I would get naked in a movie. And I was like, ‘Really, dude? My friend has been missing all of 30 seconds and now you say that? I kind of laughed in his face.”
In the same USA Today interview, Pompeo said she met with Weinstein in a hotel room, but didn’t experienced any harassment from the disgraced film executive.
“I met with Harvey at the Peninsula and he didn’t try anything on me,” Pompeo told USA Today. “I was very lucky. I escaped those clutches.”
Among the women who have shared stories of harassment by Toback are actresses Rachel McAdams (Spotlight) and Selma Blair (Legally Blonde), who both told Vanity Fair they met with Toback in relation to his 2001 film Harvard Man.
Both Blair and Adams said Toback had them come to his hotel room. McAdams said Toback discussed masturbation and asked her to undress. Blair said Toback had her read lines topless, then refused to let her leave unless he could “have release,” at which point he simulated sexual intercourse on her leg while holding her head and forcing her to stare into his eyes.
