James Cameron is siding with Eliza Dushku after the former child star has admitted that she was molested while filming True Lies.
At a Television Critics Association event in California, the 63-year-old reacted to the accusation made by Dushku against lead stunt coordinator Joel Kramer. The alleged sexual assault happened on the set of Cameron's 1994 movie.
No Mercy
The renowned director claims that he did not know what happened to Dushku. If he did, he would have immediately punished Kramer.
"Directors are historically pretty oblivious to the inter-personal things that are happening on the set, because they're focused on what they're doing creatively, but had I known about there would have been no mercy," he stated. "I have daughters. There really would be no mercy now."
He also praised the 37-year-old for finally having the courage to speak up and exposed her assailant 20 years after the assault happened.
"Eliza is very brave for speaking up," The Terminator director added. "It's just heartbreaking that it happened to her."
Jamie Lee Curtis, the actress who played the role of Dushku's mother in the movie, said that she learned about the incident years ago. She said she was and is still saddened by what happened to her young costar.
Sue Booth-Forbes, Dushku's legal guardian on the set of the movie, also confirmed the story. She added that she reported Kramer's misconduct but nothing happened.
Dushku's mom, Judith Ann Rasmussen, said that she was a political science professor at the time and could not accompany her daughter on the movie set.
Eliza Dushku's Accusation
On Saturday, Jan. 13, the actress revealed in a Facebook post that she was molested by one of Hollywood's leading stunt coordinators when she was 12 years old. She detailed that Kramer lured her into his hotel room where he took off his clothes and rubbed himself all over her body. He was 36 years old.
Dushku also questioned why no adult on set grew suspicious of how Kramer was treating her. He even called her "Jailbait," a term she did not understand at the time, in front of other people.
"Hollywood has been very good to me in many ways," she wrote. "Nevertheless, Hollywood also failed to protect me, a child actress."
In a statement, Kramer denied all allegations. The stunt coordinator who worked on high-profile movies such as Blade Runner 2049 and Furious 7 said that he thought she had a crush on him at the time. He also admitted that he gave her a kiss on the cheek and a hug because the crew treated her like family.
The stunt coordinator has since been fired by his agency.
