Nice try, but no. Chloë Sevigny spoke out about three unnamed film directors who have “crossed the line” with her over the years during a panel at the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday, May 18, and how those experiences have made her stronger.
“I’ve had the ‘what are you doing after this?’ conversation,” the 41-year-old Kitty director said, according to Variety. “I’ve also had the ‘do you want to go shopping and try on some clothes and, like, I can buy you something in the dressing room’ [conversation]. Just, like, crossing the line weirdness.”
Sevigny, who has played several sexually explicit roles in films ranging from her debut in 1995’s Kids to 2003’s The Brown Bunny, said that she even had one director make inappropriate comments about her body.
“‘You should show your body off more. You shouldn’t wait until you’re as old as this certain actress who had just been naked in a film, you should be naked on screen now,’” she recalled of what he told her, to which she retorted, “If you know my career, I’ve been naked in every movie!”
She did not end up getting the roles after auditioning for those directors.
The American Horror Story star admitted that she’s wary about calling the behaviors sexual harassment, however, since they’re so commonplace in the industry.
“I would consider it Hollywood,” she said. “Was it sexual harassment? It’s such a fine line.”
As for her advice to younger actresses who might look at using their sexuality as a way to get ahead in the game, Sevigny is straightforward.
“If you’re young and impressionable and really want the part, it might be a tempting avenue, but I hope not,” she said. “I don’t know if other actresses would be susceptible to that, and if they are, I’m really sorry for them. On fashion shoots or in movie auditions or on set or whatever it is, men often make advances … all types of inappropriate things, and you just have to know how to protect yourself.”
