Eliza Dushku, fired after complaining about sexual ‘jokes,’ gets $9.5M
Eliza Dushku —INSTAGRAM
“Bull” actor Michael Weatherly’s sexual “jokes” on set led to actress Eliza Dushku protesting his behavior. She was then written off the show, or wrongfully terminated, according to a report by the New York Times.
Dushku, who was originally set to costar for four seasons in the CBS procedural show, appeared only in three episodes of season one, but was ultimately paid $9.5 million. Her confidential settlement came to light after the CBS Corporation board’s order to investigate accusations of women against then-CEO Leslie Moonves.
The former “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” actress, who posted on Facebook early this year about her sexual molestation as a child in 1994 while working on the film “True Lies,” felt uncomfortable with Weatherly’s jokes, which were made in front of the cast and crew.
In the report, Weatherly, an “NCIS” cast member from 2003 to 2016, “joked” to Dushku while she was in character: “Threesome?”
In another instance, she told investigators, Weatherly said he’d bend her over his leg and spank her.
And at one point during filming, Weatherly told her that he’d bring her to a “rape van,” which was a windowless vehicle that was in the scene. He later admitted that it was “a joke that misfired.”
Dushku complained to Weatherly about his behavior, and how it influenced a crew member to tell her that he wanted to join the threesome.
Days after her complaint, she was ejected from the show, which she perceived as retaliation. Mark Engstrom, CBS chief compliance officer, surrendered outtakes from “Bull,” which showed Dushku cursing. But it was proven
“a gold mine,” as some of the incidents she
reported were recorded.
Dushku received from CBS about the amount she would have made for about six years of work. Weatherly’s ex-costars from “NCIS,” Pauley Perrette and Sasha Alexander, tweeted support for him.
Dushku then wrote in an op-ed for the Boston Globe that since Weatherly broke his silence with “revisionist” comments, it was time to defend herself: “Weatherly sexually harassed and bullied me day in and day out and would have gotten away with it had he not been caught on tape, and had the CBS lawyers not inadvertently shared the tapes with my counsel,” Dushku said.
“He regularly commented on my ‘ravishing’ beauty, followed by audible groans, ooh-ing and aah-ing. As the tapes show, he liked to boast about his sperm and vasectomy reversals.”—OLIVER PULUMBARIT
