Asia Argento, accuser of Harvey Weinstein and one of the big voices behind the #Metoo Movement, reportedly handled her own sexual misconduct case on the down low and now the details are coming to light. The actress made an arrangement to pay Jimmy Bennett, who accused her of sexually assaulting him in 2013.
The New York Times reported that Argento arranged a deal to pay actor/musician Bennett $380,000. The Times said that the alleged assault happened months past his 17th birthday in a California hotel room. Argento was 37 at the time. In court documents, a selfie with the two lying in bed was included. In their agreement, Bennett gave the photo and its copyright to Argento.
Argento nor Bennett have commented on the story but Bennett’s lawyer, Gordon K. Sattro made this statement to The Times:
“In the coming days, Jimmy will continue doing what he has been doing over the past months and years, focusing on his music.”
In October, Argento was featured in Ronan Farrow’s article where she accused Weinstein of forcibly performing oral sex on her 20 years ago. Farrow writes he was told by 13 women that Weinstein sexually harassed or assaulted them, with three claiming rape and four saying they experienced unwanted touching that could be classified as an assault.
Another big voice behind the #MeToo Movement has been actress Rose McGowan and she has released the following statement after the Argento story broke:
“I got to know Asia Argento ten months ago. Our commonality is the shared pain of being assaulted by Harvey Weinstein. My heart is broken. I will continue my work on behalf of victims everywhere. None of us know the truth of the situation and I’m sure more will be revealed. Be gentle.”
McGowan and Argento have publicly supported each other since the Weinstein story broke in October. McGowan recently stood by Argento when her boyfriend, Anthony Bourdain, committed suicide and Argento appeared on McGowan’s docu-series, Citizen Rose.
