Abigail Breslin has broken her silence after being sued by production companies for accusing her co-star Aaron Eckhart of "aggressive" behaviour on the set of their film Classified.
In November 2023, the Little Miss Sunshine star was sued for breach of contract by the producers, who claimed she cost the production thousands of dollars by refusing to be on set alone with Eckhart.
Until the lawsuit was filed, it was not publicly known that Breslin had confidentially accused The Dark Knight actor of "aggressive, demeaning, and unprofessional" behaviour in a letter to her union earlier that year.
In a lengthy Tumblr post over the weekend, the 28-year-old addressed the situation and compared it to Blake Lively recently accusing her director and co-star Justin Baldoni of sexual harassment on the set of It Ends with Us.
"In my recent career, I've brought forward concerns about a male colleague and was deemed 'hysterical.' I was told my fears were figments of my imagination. Now, as I'm seeing this pattern pop up more, I realize this is the norm," the Little Miss Sunshine star began.
"When a suit was filed against me by a former employer, (the suit was withdrawn), after making a confidential complaint against a coworker for unprofessional behavior, I had the silly and naive impression they would believe me," the 28-year-old continued. "Instead of being believed and protected, a suit was filed against me for having the audacity to speak up. I was publicly shamed and defamed in the process."
Breslin went on to ask why women are treated as "scapegoats" in such situations and why the public is so quick to defend men and call women liars. She claimed that women are considered "weak" for not speaking up about misconduct yet thought of as "b**tchy, bossy, divas" if they do.
"And so here we find ourselves again, in a vicious cycle of crucifying another woman for speaking out against a man. Watching as the world splits in two over who is telling the truth, no matter how much evidence is presented. Because how could a woman do anything but lie or exaggerate?" she stated.
Classified was released on demand with little fanfare in October. Eckhart has not publicly commented on the allegations.
Baldoni has denied all of the accusations in Lively's lawsuit and is currently preparing to file his own legal action.
