Kate Beckinsale Speaks Out: ‘That Has to Stop’—Reveals Harrowing Film Set Mistreatment Amid Blake Lively’s Legal Battle
The feud between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni began months ago on the set of ‘It Ends With Us.’ Soon following the release of the movie Lively claimed that she was harassed on set by her co-star.
There was a brief moment of peace before Lively officially filed a legal complaint, making it one of the year’s biggest celebrity controversies of this year. Baldoni recently also filed a complaint of his own while Lively received overwhelming support from her co-stars and other celebrity names.
Now Kate Beckinsale joins the fray as the actress shared on Instagram that she’s faced harassment for speaking up about poor working conditions on film sets.
While she doesn’t know Blake Lively or Justin Baldoni personally or have inside knowledge about their situation, Lively’s complaint about harassment reminded Beckinsale of the misogyny she’s experienced in the industry.
Beckinsale wanted to highlight how the industry often reacts when women raise legitimate complaints. She shared an example from her own experience, where she was labeled with a slur for speaking up about a co-star’s unprofessional behavior. Despite showing empathy for her co-star’s struggles, she faced backlash simply for addressing the impact on her and the crew, such as long delays and missing time with her daughter.
What this has highlighted is this machine that goes into effect when a woman complains about something legitimately offensive, upsetting, harmful, or whatever else in this industry. I’ve been on a film, for example, where by the end of it I was referred to over walkie-talkies and to my face as ‘that c—,’ because I had said, ‘I’m finding it very difficult, my costar is drunk every day and he’s obviously going through something and I have full sympathy for that, but I’m also waiting, as is the whole crew, six hours a day for him to learn his lines and it means I’m not getting to see my daughter in the evenings for the whole movie.
‘Underworld’ star explained that when she raised concerns about her co-star’s behavior, the studio dismissed the issue by giving her a bike to pass the time. Despite this, she was still insulted and labeled with slurs, showing how her legitimate concerns were trivialized and met with hostility.
Kate Beckinsale shared that she experienced mistreatment on multiple projects, though she didn’t name specific movies or directors aside from Harvey Weinstein. She revealed being subjected to such extreme exercise regimens in two films that she lost her periods, highlighting the harsh and damaging expectations placed on her.
This is far from the first time that major stars are calling out the state of the industry. While studios and other big names are celebrating feminism and the contributions that women have in the industry, it looks like the reality is a far cry from their curated PR pieces and that they consider women more akin to “necessary evil.’
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