The Hollywood red carpet is in danger of becoming a ghost town as more and more actors and others in the entertainment industry are bailing on any situation that will find them standing with a microphone in their face. They are desperately trying to avoid questions about sexual harassment and misconduct, and really, who could blame them?
Every day, new allegations are being made against various directors, actors and other artists who have misbehaved in both the recent and long ago past. There has been a steady stream of sexual harassment allegations in the news, with something new breaking every day. Just this week, Charlie Sheen was accused of raping a then 13-year-old Corey Haim on the set of Lucas, though the once iconic actor of such films as Young Guns, Major League, Platoon and Wall Street denies it. Then there is Jeffery Tambor, accused of harassing a transgender individual who used to serve as his assistant. He calls the woman a 'former disgruntled' employe. This all comes in the wake of claims targeting Kevin Spacey, who's lost his career over various accusations, producer Harvey Weinstein, who faces being arrested for rape, and director James Toback, who has had more than 30 women and counting come out and call him some horrible things.
With all of this breaking at the same time, the red carpet and once celebrated Hollywood premieres are becoming a very unwelcoming place for all involved, even if they've never been a victim of sexual abuse. Sony has canceled the planned November 16 red carpet premiere of Ridley Scott's finished movie All the Money in the World. This is partially due to the fact that, at the last moment, Scott has decided to cut Kevin Spacey completely out of the movie and replace him with Christopher Plummer, which requires at least 10 days of reshoots. Scott still plans to have the movie in theaters by December 22.
The movie was supposed to be the closing night movie of the AFI Fest, but the studio feels it would be 'inappropriate to celebrate at a gala at this difficult time', with Kevin Spacey's name once attached to the award season drama that focuses on the kidnapping of J. Paul Getty's son.
It's unlikely that the cast and crew of All the Money in the World will offer up many interviews as the film heads towards the release this Christmas, with any press relegated to high profile magazine pieces that are manageable by the actor's reps that are involved. The movie stars Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg.
The red carpet is generally known for its breezy, fun and short interview slots that usually don't pose world defining questions. But in light of what is going on in Hollywood, this is turning into a very serious and heavy affair. One reporter recounted their experience on the recent red carpet for the Elle Women in Hollywood event that was held on October 17.
"I went to the Elle Women in Hollywood event [Oct. 17] and every woman I spoke to on that carpet told me a story, a very specific story, about something that had happened, and they were open, they wanted to talk about it. I think at that point, there was a feeling that there was the onus on them to not stay quiet, that they owed it to other women to speak out... a feeling of if you keep quiet then you're colluding with it."
With the last end of the year spat of movies coming out, many studios are pulling back on their press junkets as sexual harassment questions are becoming the norm for these individual 3 minute capsule reviews. The Hollywood Reporter first reported on this behavior, and they speculate that the Holiday season will see less and less actors and directors promoting their work in an uncontrolled environment. But the red carpet won't stay quiet for long. It's expected that the time honored tradition will return to its full glory when things cool off, and the bigger scandals start to fade. Though, some assume that things could get completely back to normal as Oscar season begins to really heat up.