Rose McGowan is speaking up against Hollywood, claiming it is a "cult" that blacklisted her after she exposed Harvey Weinstein.
The "Charmed" star eventually ditched acting but she regrets not doing it sooner. McGowan spoke to Yahoo about her experience in Hollywood and why she chose to walk away.
"It was my day job. I acquitted myself very well, but it wasn't the love of my life," she said. "I refused to give up who I was forever just to stay in a [Hollywood] system that I fundamentally disagree with, that I think is a cult. And then I get blacklisted after being sexually assaulted, and then what job are you doing to do? Then it was like taking the dregs and scraping the bottom of the barrel trying to get what [roles] I could. That's just a crap way to live. And it's not artistically where I live."
McGowan admitted she was unhappy for a long time and could trace it to her days on the set of "Charmed," which aired from 1998 to 2006.
"I was a fringe person, and lonely as hell. I was very famous for being on TV; I was famous for not being me," she said. "It's a weird situation."
Then she met Weinstein and her life was turned upside down. McGowan said she had always been afraid of being sexually assaulted, and being in Hollywood left her vulnerable to it.
"I think it was always going to be that way," she said. "It's just a common [fear], the guy coming in at night with a mask on his face. That's terrifying. It's the Boogieman. But our 'Boogieman' is usually someone we know, even if it's just at a breakfast meeting, in my case, at 10 in the morning.
"I wish I had gotten out of Hollywood sooner."
McGowan helped spark the #MeToo movement but found herself sidelined as it gained momentum and drew the support of dozens of other A-listers making similar claims. McGowan retaliated by calling the whole thing a "lie" in a previous interview with London's The Sunday Times.
"They're not champions. I just think they're losers," she said, questioning why no women's organizations or magazines had supported her, yet GQ could award her with a "Man of the Year" award.
"It's a Band-Aid lie to make them feel better. I know these people, I know they're lily-livered, and as long as it looks good on the surface, to them, that's enough."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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