'X-Men 3' Director Brett Ratner Accused of Sexual Harassment
Director Brett Ratner, known for films like Rush Hour and X-Men: The Last Stand, is now facing [...]
Director Brett Ratner, known for films like Rush Hour and X-Men: The Last Stand, is now facing allegations of sexual harassment.
In a report from by the Los Angeles Times, Ratner has been accused of sexual assault by six women, including Natasha Henstridge, Katherine Towne, Olivia Munn, Jamie Ray Newman, Eri Sasaki, and Jorina King. In response to the report, Ratner's attorney Martin Singer released a statement.
"I have represented Mr. Ratner for two decades, and no woman has ever made a claim against him for sexual misconduct or sexual harassment," Singer said. "Furthermore, no woman has ever requested or received any financial settlement from my client."
Henstridge told the Times that Ratner forced her to perform oral sex on him in his New York apartment in the 1990s. Henstridge was 19 at the time. "He strong-armed me in a real way. He physically forced himself on me," Henstridge said. "At some point, I gave in and he did his thing."
Katherine Towne's run-in with Ratner occurred at a 2005 party where she says he aggressively came on to her and followed her into the bathroom. Ratner also had his assistant call her for months to try and set up a date. "He started to come on to me in a way that was so extreme. I think it's pretty aggressive to go in the bathroom with someone you don't know and close the door," Towne said.
Olivia Munn had several run-ins with Ratner, starting in 2004. She was working on his film After the Sunset, where she recalls bringing food to his trailer. After entering, "He walked out ... with his belly sticking out, no pants on, shrimp cocktail in one hand and he was furiously masturbating in the other," Munn said. "And before I literally could even figure out where to escape or where to look, he ejaculated."
Munn would have to deal with him again in 2011 after he went on TV and said he slept with her. He would apologize for that later on the Howard Stern show.
Ratner's assistants have come to his defense. David Steiman, Hopi Dobuler, Drew Sherman, Brett Gursky, and Izak Rappaport have all said they did not witness any of this type of conduct from Ratner.