Entourage actor Kevin Connolly is the latest actor to be accused of sexual assault. Gracie Cox, who is a former assistant costume designer, is alleging the actor took advantage of her at a wrap party. During the 2005 Manhattan, New York celebration, Cox says it all happened so fast, she had a hard time reacting and instead just froze.
“We were at the party and I don’t think I’d been there for more than an hour or so when Kevin approached me and asked if I’d go with him for a smoke,” the 29-year-old said according to a report by the Daily Beast. She did admit that she was tipsy at the time and said Connolly, “led me down a hall to what I guess was the VIP lounge area,” then adding, “As soon as we were alone in that area, he started to kiss me. I didn’t know how to respond โ but before I could even think about what to do about it, he pulled me into one of these little side (booths), and pulled down my pants, and turned me around, and within no time was inside of me. I was just in shock.”
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Connolly has denied these accusations claiming the incident was consensual. The two were at a wrap party for The Gardener of Eden and Cox said that the actor usually flirted with her and would focus on her often times throughout his directorial debut. “It just happened really fast,” Cox, who was 29 years old at the time, added. “I froze and was in shock. Nothing like that had ever happened to me before in any way, shape or form. I was completely caught off-guard.” Cox said there wasn’t really “a chance” in her “mind to object or resist.”
“Kevin strongly supports victims of sexual assault and believes their claims should always be heard,” Marty Singer, Connolly’s lawyer said in a lengthy statement. “As someone who has worked in this industry for four decades, he has treated people with nothing but respect and has maintained a stellar reputation. Therefore, he was completely shocked to learn of the allegations made by Gracie Cox from a wrap party in 2005.”
The statement continued, “The incident with Ms. Cox was consensual, and he categorically denies any claim that it was assault. When they returned to the wrap party, Gracie’s boss, Amy Westcott, learned of what occurred and expressed her disappointment to both. Gracie shared with Kevin that she was embarrassed after getting in trouble with Amy, the head of the costume department. According to IMBD, it doesn’t appear that Gracie and Amy worked together on a project since then.”
“Amy and Kevin continued to work together for two more years on Entourage, and a few years later Amy recommended her assistant to work with Kevin to another job. Kevin completely understands Amy’s displeasure with the consensual act that transpired between Kevin and Gracie 15 years ago, after production had wrapped and they were no longer working together on the movie. Kevin acknowledged the lack of professionalism on his part, but he adomantly denies that it was anything other than a mutual consensual encounter.”