Lena Headey blasts “weird protection” extended to “predatory men” in Hollywood

Lena Headey has blasted the “weird protection” extended to “predatory men” in Hollywood, reflecting on the prevalence of inappropriate behaviour she has seen throughout her career. Headey was speaking to The Telegraph about her new BBC radio drama, Intimacy, which she wrote and stars in. It follows Liza, an intimacy coordinator who is given a big break on a major film, who later discovers the director is a man who raped her years ago during a job. As part of the wide-ranging discussion, she opened up about her experiences in Hollywood with navigating nudity on screen, as well as predatory men in the industry. “The weird protection that we offer predatory men in the business because of the disproportionate power they wield, set against the need among vulnerable actresses to work to put food on the table to get the job – it makes me very angry,” she said. “A job can be completely soured by one person who, for some reason, is allowed to get away with it. It was only when the #MeToo movement erupted [in 2017] that we realized, ‘Oh, this is everywhere.’ I think most young women I speak to now in this business are so savvy. The attitude today is, ‘I’m not fucking doing that’.” The #MeToo movement gained prominence in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct against producer Harvey Weinstein, with many survivors coming forward with accusations of abuse in the entertainment industry. Headey accused disgraced movie mogul of harassment back in 2017, amid numerous other accusations of rape, sexual harassment, and misconduct levelled at the film producer. At the time, she accused the former Miramax head – now in prison on multiple sexual assault charges – of talking to her suggestively at the Venice Film Festival in 2005 and, years later, of trying to force her into a hotel room in Los Angeles on the pretext of discussing a script, which she had resisted. She told the Telegraph it took years to learn she could stand up for herself on set, noting that when she started out, “there was this rite of passage all young female actors had to go through, which usually involved snogging and falling in love, and having sex and showing your boobs. They’d call them the ingenue parts, to make it sound nicer.” “But I just got on with it,” Headey said. “I didn’t go to drama school so I would just arrive on a set and be, ‘Oh my God, I’ve got a job.’ And when it came to those moments, I don’t think I even questioned that I should be safe. Instead I’d go home and cry, or think, ‘Oh, that felt weird and too familiar.’ Now I look back and feel, ‘Hmm, that was rough.’” She went on to star in Game of Thrones, which was infamous for its sex scenes and nudity, and was often accused by critics of using sexual violence as a gratuitous plot point. “By that point I’d been through the wringer,” she said. “I could stand up for myself. I’m not saying those actresses couldn’t, but they were much younger and more vulnerable, and had far less experience of being in front of people and the camera and performing. Whereas I was of an age where I’d just tit about and diffuse anything uncomfortable with idiocy.” However, she drew backlash after using a body double in the show’s fifth season during her character’s naked walk of shame. When it was revealed that a body double and some CGI had been used for the nude scene, some fans hit out on social media. “I was really shocked by the anger, by this idea that I’d duped the audience,” Headey said of the outrage. “But by that point everyone knew, it was insane simply going anywhere, and I was with 3,000 extras. Acting is a joy, but it requires a lot of you. I wouldn’t have been able to do the emotional part of the job; I’d have been in full-on defensive mode.”