danneelackles512: If
you have ever been fortunate enough to get that “big break” (in any
career, on any level) you know how I felt back in 2005. To quote @audreyalison and @rachelspecter “To say I was excited was an understatement, to say I left that job demoralized and confused is also an understatement.”
I
decided to speak up in part because I realize how much that first
“break” shaped my relationship with the entertainment industry in the
years that followed. Although I went on to have nothing but wonderful
experiences, with both male and female showrunners, producers and
directors, my skin had been burned. I was weary and skeptical. The
curtain had been pulled back, and I had seen the wizard. He WAS great
and powerful……… and dark…very dark.
The way I
see it, with every purge and every wizard revealed, Hollywood gains a
little of its sparkle back. This Industry I love deserves better. We
all do.
All of the female cast members of One Tree Hill have chosen this forum to stand together in support of Audrey Wauchope and one another. To use terminology that has become familiar as the systemic reality of sexual harassment and assault has come more and more to light, Mark Schwahn’s behavior over the duration of the filming of One Tree Hill was something of an “open secret.” Many of us were, to varying degrees, manipulated psychologically and emotionally. More than one of us is still in treatment for post-traumatic stress. Many of us were put in uncomfortable positions and had to swiftly learn to fight back, sometimes physically, because it was made clear to us that the supervisors in the room were not the protectors they were supposed to be. Many of us were spoken to in ways that ran the spectrum from deeply upsetting, to traumatizing, to downright illegal. And a few of us were put in positions where we felt physically unsafe. More than one woman on our show had her career trajectory threatened.
The through line in all of this was, and still is, our unwavering support of and faith in one another. We confided in each other. We set up safe spaces to talk about his behavior and how to handle it. To warn new women who joined our ranks. We understood that a lot of it was orchestrated in ways that kept it out of sight for the studio back home. We also understood that no one was fully unaware. The lack of action that has been routine, the turning of the other cheek, is intolerable. We collectively want to echo the calls of women everywhere that vehemently demand change, in all industries.
Many of us were told, during filming, that coming forward to talk about this culture would result in our show being canceled and hundreds of lovely, qualified, hard-working, and talented people losing their jobs. This is not an appropriate amount of pressure to put on young girls. Many of us since have stayed silent publicly but had very open channels of communication in our friend group and in our industry, because we want Tree Hill to remain the place “where everything’s better and everything’s safe” for our fans; some of whom have said that the show quite literally saved their lives. But the reality is, no space is safe when it has an underlying and infectious cancer. We have worked at taking our power back, making the conventions our own, and relishing in the good memories. But there is more work to be done.
We are all deeply grateful for Audrey’s courage. For one another. And for every male cast mate and crew member who has reached out to our group of women to offer their support these last few days. They echo the greater rallying cry that must lead us to change: Believe Women. We are all in this together.
With Love and Courage,
The Cast,
Sophia Bush, Hilarie Burton, Bethany Joy Lenz, Danneel Harris, Michaela McManus, Kate Voegele, Daphne Zuniga, India DeBeaufort, Bevin Prince, Jana Kramer, Shantel Van Santen, and Allison Munn
GUYS I MET JENSEN IN NORTH VANCOUVER TODAY HELP ME I CAN’T BREATHE.
He was with JJ and daneel and they were getting ice cream and putting a sleepy JJ into the car and I was like “oh, gosh, um excuse me? Mr ackles?” And he was so fucking nice you guys, I got to tell him how I’ve literally been watching supernatural since I was 7 years old and now I’m turning 19 and he laughed and I was like “OH MY GOD NOT TO MAKE YOU FEEL OLD OR ANYTHING” and I told him he was amazing and he has a beautiful family and he was just so lovely and so was Daneel and just
He had JJ and Dannie with him and JJ was sleepy and they’d gotten ice cream and when I went up to introduce myself he was putting her in the car seat and she had the cutest little voice and said “who is thaaat” and he just smiled and gave her this little peck on the forehead and said “that’s just daddy’s friend” and I gave her a little wave. Psa, JJ’s carseat is behind the passenger seat so jensen can keep an eye on her while he’s driving someone help me plz