Transparent actress accuses star Jeffrey Tambor of sexual harassment
Guest-star Trace Lysette alleges that the actor made "many sexual advances" towards her
Jeffrey Tambor, star of Amazon's transgender comedy Transparent, is facing a second allegation of sexual assault after actress Trace Lysette claimed on Twitter that the actor had made "many sexual advances" towards her, one of which "got physical".
In a statement, the actress – who has appeared regularly as a guest-star on across the flagship show's four series run – described a moment she says occurred while they were filming the second season.
“I stood in a corner on the set as the crew reset for a wide shot," the statement reads. "My back was against the wall in a corner as Jeffrey approached me. He came in close, put his bare feet on top of mine so I could not move, leaned his body against me, and began quick, discreet thrusts back and forth against my body.”
She also called upon the streaming giants to use the alleged incident as a "teaching moment". Read her statement in full below.
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Tambor has denied the accusation, describing it in a statement as "more distressing than I can express.”
“For the past four years, I’ve had the huge privilege — and huge responsibility – of playing Maura Pfefferman, a transgender woman, in a show that I know has had an enormous, positive impact on a community that has been too long dismissed and misunderstood,” Tambor said.
“Now I find myself accused of behaviour that any civilised person would condemn unreservedly.
“I know I haven’t always been the easiest person to work with. I can be volatile and ill-tempered, and too often I express my opinions harshly and without tact.
“But I have never been a predator – ever. I am deeply sorry if any action of mine was ever misinterpreted by anyone as being sexually aggressive or if I ever offended or hurt anyone.
“But the fact is, for all my flaws, I am not a predator and the idea that someone might see me in that way is more distressing than I can express.”
Lysette is the second member of the show's cast and crew to accuse the star of inappropriate behaviour, after Tambor's former assistant Van Barnes. Last week, an Amazon spokesperson told Variety that the company was investigating claims that Barnes made in a private Facebook post which Tambor later denied as "baseless".
