Terry Crews called out agent Adam Venit by name in his most detailed interview since alleging he was sexually assaulted by the Hollywood mogul.
The former NFL player appeared on Good Morning America Wednesday to open up about the bizarre incident during an interview with Michael Strahan.
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Crews alleges that Venit, who is head of the motion picture department at William Morris Endeavor, groped him during an event he attended with wife Rebecca King-Crews and Adam Sandler in February 2016. Venit is Sandler’s agent, as well as other Hollywood heavyweights Sylvester Stallone and Eddie Murphy.
“He’s connected to probably everyone I know in the business,” Crews said during the interview. “I did not know this man. I have never had a conversation with him, ever. I knew of him… The first time I ever had an interaction with him was at this event.”
The 49-year-old claimed Venit made odd sexual gestures toward him throughout the night, then things escalated.
“I’m looking at him and he’s basically staring at me and he’s sticking his tongue. Just overtly sexual kind of tongue moves. It’s a party, it’s packed, the whole thing,” he continued. “And I’m looking like, ‘Is this a joke? I don’t understand.’ It was actually so bizarre. And he keeps coming over to me. I stick my hand out and he literally takes his hand and puts it, squeezes my genitals. And I jump back like, ‘Hey, hey!’ … I go, ‘Dude, what are you doing?’”
After Crews stopped Venit’s first indecent touch, the Brooklyn Nine-Nine actor said the agent’s behavior continued.
“And then he comes back again and he just won’t stop. And then I really got forceful, pushed him back, he bumps into all the other partygoers and he starts giggling and laughing,” he said on GMA. “I have never felt more emasculated, more objectified. I was horrified. I went over to Adam [Sandler] right then and there and said, ‘Man, come get your boy. What is his problem?’”
Crews said Sandler didn’t understand what was happening either because it was “bizarre to both of us.” He recalled feeling so much anger from the incident he could “punch a hole” in Venit’s head.
Crews filed a police report on Nov. 8 alleging sexual assault against Venit, the Los Angeles Police Department confirms.
The actor came forward as a sexual assault victim to the public last month after multiple sexual misconduct allegations were made against entertainment industry leader Harvey Weinstein.
“I will not be shamed. I did nothing wrong. Nothing,” he said. “What kind of man would I be to tell my kids, ‘If someone touches you where you don’t want to, tell someone’ if I’m not doing it myself?”
In Crews’ original account of the assault, which he shared on Twitter, the actor said he told everyone he knew at the party who worked with Venit what happened. He claimed Venit called him the following day to apologize, but gave no explanation for his behavior.
Amid Crews’ allegations, Venit has been placed on leave by WME earlier this month.
