Eliza Dushku backs ‘powerful’ abuse claims against ‘Buffy’ boss Joss Whedon
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Charisma Carpenter has another high-profile co-star in her corner.
“Bring It On” star Eliza Dushku is the latest “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” alum to voice her support for Carpenter, 50, who alleged on Wednesday that “Buffy” creator, Joss Whedon, 56, “abused his power” and fostered an “increasingly volatile work environment.”
“CC, my heart aches for you and I’m so sorry you have held this for so long,” Dushku, who is no stranger to workplace harassment battles, wrote on Instagram. “Your post was powerful, painful, and painted a picture we’ll collectively never un-see or un-know.”
Dushku played rogue vampire slayer, Faith, opposite Carpenter’s Cordelia Chase on both “Buffy” and its spinoff “Angel.” She joins an increasing list of “Buffy” vets — including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Michelle Trachtenberg, Amber Benson, and Emma Caulfield — to voice support on social media, telling Carpenter: “I admire, respect, and love you.”
The 40-year-old “Tru Calling” and “Dollhouse” actress has previously experienced toxic workplaces. In 2018, Dushku alleged that “True Lies” stunt coordinator Joel Kramer sexually abused her when she was 12 years old.
Then came the bombshell report that same year revealing Dushku was secretly paid $9.5 million by CBS in 2018 for claims she was retaliated against and written off “Bull” after complaining about alleged sexual harassment by lead Michael Weatherly on set.
“I frequently think of the saying, ‘we are as sick as our secrets,’” Dushku continued in her post. “Our secrets indeed make and keep us sick. What I’m learning more and more — and have personally found most valuable — is that profound healing can only come from naming and disclosing what actually happened, the necessary first step (once someone’s ready) to freeing ourselves from our secrets, untold truths which have kept us isolated, ashamed, and held hostage.”
Carpenter cited Ray Fisher’s unceremonious firing as Cyborg from the forthcoming “The Flash” flick as the catalyst for her coming out against Whedon. The “Justice League” actor had accused his director of being “gross, abusive, unprofessional and completely unacceptable” to him and others on the set of the Warner Bros. superhero film. The 33-year-old actor retweeted Carpenter’s emotional post and called her “one of the bravest people I know.”
Carpenter and Fisher’s claims add to Trachtenberg’s allegations of “not appropriate behavior” by Whedon toward the then-teenager on the set of “Buffy,” and that “there was a rule saying he’s not allowed in a room alone” with her again.
Reps for Whedon — who “parted ways” with HBO’s “The Nevers” in November — have not responded to The Post’s requests for comment.
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