Actor Matthew Lawrence, best known for Mrs. Doubtfire and his years as part of the Boy Meets World cast ensemble, has opened up about some highly unfortunate experiences he faced in Hollywood throughout his career. The actor, now 43 years old, alleged that he turned down sexual advances from a prominent Hollywood director, claiming it resulted in him losing not just the chance at what sounded like a significant role in a then-upcoming Marvel film, but that it also caused other professional setbacks.
In the latest episode of the Brotherly Love podcast, the Melissa and Joey actor revealed while talking with his brothers and co-hosts that a major Oscar-winning director propositioned him for a chance to land a coveted superhero movie role. While he did not reveal the director’s name, nor what project the experience was supposedly tied to, Lawrence alleged that the filmmaker gave a hotel room invite that definitely wasn't meant to remain professional the whole time. According to Lawrence:
Yeah, there’s been many times in my life where I’ve been propositioned to get a huge role. I’ve lost my agency because I went to the hotel room, which I can’t believe they would send me to, of a very prominent Oscar award-winning director who showed up in his robe, asked me to take my clothes off and said he needed to take Polaroids of me. And that if I did X, Y, and Z, I would be the next ‘Marvel’ character.
Again, the actor didn’t reveal any names, specific dates on when this alleged encounter happened, or any other identifying details. But he claims turning down the director caused him to get dropped by his agent, with the idea being that the role would have been quite lucractive for them both.
In the same breath, he highlighted the double standard that he thinks exists when it comes to male actors talking about sexual harassment versus how things go when female actors share such claims. He continued:
I didn’t do that, and my agency fired me because I left this director’s room. A lot of my other male friends have gone through [it], both men and women, but there’s a double standard.
Lawrence then brought up Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Terry Crews, who was ridiculed by 50 Cent and others when he came forward with his story of being sexually assaulted. For those who might not know, Terry Crews appeared on Capitol Hill in 2018 to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding his experience with sexual assault. In a very emotional testimony, the White Chicks actor alleged that Hollywood agent Adam Venit sexually assaulted him by grabbing his genitals. Crews has been a tremendous supporter of the #MeToo movement and very outspoken about toxic masculinity, and turned down a role in Expendables 4 due to alleged threats he received from a producer over going public with his story.
The Brotherly Love actor had this to say about how Crews has been treated since coming forward:
Terry Crews comes out and says it; people are laughing at him. People don’t support him. They kick him out. Why? Because he’s a man that represents masculinity, and I think our society is less ready to hear that situation going on with men than they are with women.
The Boy Meets World vet still believes that though actors like Crews and Brendan Fraser have come forward with allegations, many male actors remain unconvinced to speak their own truths without knowing straightaway that they'll be taken seriously. He said:
Not a lot of guys, in my opinion, have come out and talked about this in the industry. There is also this same situation. Now granted, it’s probably about a third of what women go through. The amount of men… Men go through this as well, whether it’s another woman or another man in power.
Matthew Lawrence’s troubling story sheds light on the rampant abuse of power that has long been a skeleton in Hollywood's closet, due to the sometimes inhumane pressures that actors of any gender have faced to conform to the demands of those in positions of authority. You can watch the entire Brotherly Love podcast and listen to the actor talk about his experience in the video below.
New installments of Brotherly Love are released every Friday via your favorite listening spot.
