Matt Damon, after coming under fire from several sectors for his recent outpouring about sexual misconduct in Hollywood, has been targeted by his ex-girlfriend Minnie Driver.
Ms Driver used Twitter to tell the world how she was shocked by Matt Damon’s comments on sexual misconduct last week. The actress elaborated her position further when interviewed by the media.
Driver told reporters that there is a “cut off” for the men in her life regardless their closeness to her and then men “could not understand” the abuse women experience on a daily level.
She went on to accuse Damon of attempting to dictate to women about issues of sexual abuse and had made a series of tone-deaf comments. She accused Damon of “dictating the terms” of abuse and reaffirmed that nobody could make comments on an individual’s story of abuse.
When Damon shared his perspective on the current wave of sexual misconduct scandals in Hollywood, he was probably not prepared for the widespread backlash he would get.
Damon argued that there was a “spectrum of behaviour” to be considered in each case, citing that the case of Al Franken as not as serious as that of Harvey Weinstein. Damon commended comedian Louis CK for his remorseful honesty in apologising and admitting to his guilt. Damon seemed to imply that CK’s actions could be more easily forgiven than someone who had simply denied all allegations.
Driver accused Damon of defending Louis CK and implying that because the comedian did not commit an act of rape his crime wasn’t as bad.
In response to Damon attempting to apply nuance to levels of abuse, Driver said that all sexual misconduct should be seen under “one umbrella” and that it was not his job to differentiate between severities.
Driver stated that it was time for women to speak up about abuse and that men should “just listen” without sharing an opinion on the matter.
These comments come over two months after a huge United States reappraisal of sex relations came after accusations of rape and sexual abuse by Harvey Weinstein came to light. Weinstein has since denied all allegations against him.
Damon’s attempts to apply a level of nuance to the issue, however well-intentioned have appeared to have made him a target of vicious backlash from female celebrities. Certainly this response from Driver reflects the deeply emotional issues surrounding sexual misconduct and that Hollywood is going to be very much changed before the dust settles.