By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Argento wants McGowan to retract a statement she made regarding Argento being accused of sexual assault.
About a month ago the #MeToo movement, after gaining global renown and momentum, was shaken from within. A New York Timesreport said that Asia Argento, one of the most notable voices within the movement and a Harvey Weinstein accuser, had made a deal with former co-star Jimmy Bennett to pay him off in response to him accusing her of sexually assaulting him when he was a minor.
Though Argento admitted to paying Bennett but denied any sexual misconduct, Rose McGowan, another prominent voice within #MeToo, received texts from partner Rain Dove contradicting Argento's story. It's these texts and the statements McGowan released along with them that has Argento threatening legal action. With "genuine regret" Argento notified McGowan on Twitter that she had 24 hours to retract the "libel" before she takes "immediate action."
The statement being referred to partially reads:
"I received a phone call and series of messages from the being I've been dating- Rain Dove. They said that they had been texting with Asia and that Asia had revealed that she had indeed slept with Jimmy Bennet. Rain also shared that Asia had stated that she'd been receiving unsolicited nudes of Jimmy since he had been 12. Asia mentioned in these texts that she didn't take any action on those images. No reporting to authorities, to the parents, or blocking of Jimmy's social media. Not even a simple message "Don't send me these images. They are inappropriate." There were a few other details revealed as well that I am not at liberty to mention in this statement as investigators do their job."
\u201c2. @rosemcgowan has released a lengthy statement in response to the allegations against Asia Argento. \n\nThe last bit: "Do the right thing. Be honest. Be fair. Let justice stay its course. Be the person you wish Harvey could have been."\u201d— Yashar Ali \ud83d\udc18 \u06cc\u0627\u0634\u0627\u0631 (@Yashar Ali \ud83d\udc18 \u06cc\u0627\u0634\u0627\u0631) 1535405537
The Times reported that Argento paid Bennett $380,000 after he accused her of sexually assaulting him when he was 17 and she was 37. The incident allegedly happened in California, where the age of consent is 18.
Dove released a statement after McGowan confirming that the text conversation was between the two of them and that they had sent the messages to the authorities and asking that Argento's past with Harvey Weinstein not be distrusted based on her actions in the Bennett incident.
