Michael Douglas was already denying accusations of sexual harassment weeks before Susan Braudy's allegations were made public.
In 1981, Braudy was appointed as the vice president of east coast production at Warner Brothers, and also worked as vice president of Douglas' Stonebridge production company from 1986 to 1989. She has also worked with Francis Ford Coppola, Jerry Bruckheimer, Martin Scorsese and Oliver Stone.
On Thursday, The Hollywood Reporter released a story where Braudy claims that while working with the 73-year-old actor in the '80s, she was repeatedly verbally harassed by him. She also alleges that during a work meeting at his home in 1989, he fondled himself in front of her.
After the release of THR's article, Braudy appeared on the Today show and spoke with NBC News' Kate Snow. "He thought he was the king of the world and that he could humiliate me without any repercussion," she said in an interview that aired on Friday morning.
Further recalling the alleged incident that occurred at Douglas' home, she continued, "He slid down the floor, unbuckled his belt and put his hand inside his trousers and I could see what he was doing. Then he began to... fondle himself -- and I was very scared."
Michael Douglas' accuser speaks out for the first time on TODAY. She describes what happened and why she didn't speak out at the time. pic.twitter.com/DRu9Aefmro
Braudy said that she confided in several friends and they advised her not to speak of the alleged encounter. "One of my friends said you better not tell people about him," Braudy remembers. "People were frightened for me."
When speaking to THR, Braudy also details the alleged crude comments made by Douglas to her while they were working together.
"I laughed loudly and he shouted to a group of agents, 'Oh yeah, she's a screamer! I bet she screams in the sack,'" she claims. "I protested, 'Please, don't talk like that. It's inappropriate.' This made him laugh until he got pink splotches on his cheeks."
When asked to comment on Braudy's allegations, Douglas told THR that they were "an unfortunate and complete fabrication."
The Oscar winner also spoke preemptively to Deadline about the sexual harassment claims against him. "I can't believe that someone would cause someone else pain like this,” he said. “Maybe she is disgruntled her career didn't go the way she hoped and she is holding this grudge."
As for Douglas' wife, Catherine Zeta-Jones, she is standing in support of her husband. “My reaction was that as two people who have been in this business -- him longer than me -- was that we support ‘Me Too’ and the movement more than anybody, anybody -- me as a woman, him as a man,” the 48-year-old actress told ET on Sunday. “And there was no other way than to be preemptive in a story that had to be watched. He did a statement. I think it’s very clear the way that he stands. I cannot elaborate on something that’s so very personal to him.”
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