Olivia Munn Fights Back Against Sexual Predator
by EG
The director of The Predator hired his friend, a registered sex offender, to play a guy who sexually harasses Olivia Munn, and the director failed to tell Munn that the actor had been convicted of sexually pursuing a 14-year-old girl. That didn't sit well with her, and she spoke up, unlike the rest of the movie's cast. Read on for details.
Via PopSugar.
On Sept. 6, news broke that 20th Century Fox had deleted a scene from its upcoming movie The Predator, the fourth installment in the series. The scene featured Steven Wilder Striegel, a registered sex offender who had been cast by his longtime friend and director of The Predator Shane Black.
While the studio stated it wasn't aware of Striegel's background when he was cast — there are legal limitations that prevent studios from running background checks on actors — it was alerted to the fact by Olivia Munn, the sole member of the principal cast to share a scene with Striegel. Once Munn shared Striegel's past with the studio on Aug. 15, executives quickly removed the scene from the movie.
Black, who knew of his friend's background, defended his decision to hire Streigel as a jogger who repeatedly hits on Munn's character. In a written statement to the Los Angeles Times, the director said, "I personally chose to help a friend. I can understand others might disapprove, as his conviction was on a sensitive charge and not to be taken lightly."
Striegel pleaded guilty in 2010 after allegations that he attempted to lure a 14-year-old girl into a sexual relationship though emails. He served six months in jail before returning to a life of acting, with Black also casting him in Iron Man 3 and The Nice Guys. Munn, who was not made aware of Striegel's background when she agreed to act alongside him, admitted that it was Black's decision not to inform the cast and crew, a fact that she found "both surprising and unsettling." She also shared her feelings on Twitter, stating that a big part of the problem was having the opportunity to make an informed choice about whether or not to work with him taken away.
Get the rest of the story at PopSugar.
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