George Takei Apologizes for Comments Made on Howard Stern's Show

Star Trek star George Takei has issued an apology for remarks he made during an interview with [...]

By Jamie Lovett

Star Trek star George Takei has issued an apology for remarks he made during an interview with Howard Stern last month.

The interview resurfaced after Takei was accused of committing sexual assault on a former model in 1981. In a Facebook post, Takei said that the comments were distasteful jokes that were made as an extension of his public persona.

"Many have raised concern over a back-and-forth between Howard Stern and myself, where we joked about me touching men during my Star Trek days fifty years ago," Takei wrote. "Out of context, I agree that the joke was distasteful, and I'm very sorry he and I made fun out of a serious matter."

Takei goes on to again deny the accusations made against him.

"For decades, I have played the part of a 'naughty gay grandpa' when I visit Howard's show, a caricature I now regret," he added. "But I want to be clear: I have never forced myself upon someone during a date. Sometimes my dates were the initiators, and sometimes I was. It was always by mutual consent. I see now that it has come across poorly in the awkward sketch, and I apologize for playing along with Howard's insinuation.

"Non-consensual acts are anathema to me and my personal code of conduct, and I would never do something against anyone's will, period."

The comments made on Howard Stern's show became newly relevant because of how closely they resembled the account of Takei's accuser, Scott Brunton, who claims he fell asleep at Takei's home and awoke to his genitals being groped.

"I came to and said, 'What are you doing?!' I said, 'I don't want to do this.' He goes, 'You need to relax. I am just trying to make you comfortable. Get comfortable.' And I said, 'No. I don't want to do this,'" Brunton said.

Takei first denied the allegations on Twitter on Saturday night.

"The events he describes back in the 1980s simply did not occur, and I do not know why he has claimed them now," he wrote. "I have wracked my brain to ask if I remember Mr. Brunton, and I cannot say I do."

Trending Now: