Naomie Harris, most known for playing Eve Moneypenny in the last three James Bond movies, has opened up about the time she was groped by “a huge, huge star” during an audition. The Oscar-nominated actress did not go into specifics about the actor responsible or the project the audition was for, only mentioning that they were a major name in the industry.
While speaking to Mail on Sunday, Harris explained that the actor in question put his hand up her skirt while she was working with him during the audition. The individual faced no reprisal for his actions from the other people in the room due to his hefty status in Hollywood:
“What was so shocking about it was the casting director was there and the director, and of course no one said anything because he was – he is – such a huge star. That was my only #MeToo incident, so I felt very lucky given how rife that behaviour was,” Harris recalled.
Harris went on to reflect on how the #TimesUp movement has positively affected her experiences on film sets, revealing that what she refers to as a “#MeToo incident” occurred on another project she was on and, on that occasion, the perpetrator was swiftly removed from production. Again, the actress declined to go into specifics.
“Now things have definitely changed: I was on a project where there was a #MeToo incident and there was no hesitation, [the perpetrator] was immediately removed,” she said.
Harris has also seen the impact on the #TimesUp and #MeToo movements play out on the set of No Time To Die, Daniel Craig’s most recent — and last — 007 movie. The production team brought on board an intimacy coordinator for the first time to ensure all participants were comfortable during the filming of sex and romantic sequences.
2021 has been a big year for Harris, who rose to fame in the mid-00s for her portrayal of Tia Dalma in the Pirates of the Caribbean sequels. On top of reprising her role as M’s secretary Moneypenny in Bond 25, she made her debut in a Marvel project in Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Naomie Harris played Frances Barrison aka Shriek, partner-in-crime and love interest to Woody Harrelson’s Cletus Kasady.
