The actress revealed her alleged encounter as a teenager with an older man who made her feel harassed.
As more and more actresses come forward about their experiences with sexual harassment, Riverdale star Lili Reinhart took to her personal Tumblr on Wednesday to share her own story.
“In light of the Harvey Weinstein allegations, I feel the need to share a story of my own personal experience where a man in a position of power over me, used that said power to try and take advantage of me,” the 21-year-old actress began her Tumblr post.
Reinhart went on to detail her alleged encounter of sexual harassment from an older co-worker on a project.
Reinhart admitted she had a crush on the person at the time, but he allegedly tried to force himself on her during a date.
“I had to stop him and say 'no, I don’t want that,' and 'I can’t do that.,'" she wrote. "I physically walked away from the situation before it could get any worse. I remember feeling like this was a scene right out of a horror movie,” she wrote.
According to Reinhart, the alleged perpetrator also tried to drive her back to his place after she refused his advances.
“And I knew if I made it there, something bad was going to happen to me,” she continued.
After returning home, Reinhart claims he “refused to talk” to her on set, and that she was made to feel guilty for turning him down.
“I was miserable. And I felt that I needed to keep my mouth shut about the entire situation because 1. I figured no one would believe me and 2. he played a much bigger role in this project than me… he had more power,” Reinhart
said.
The Riverdale star concluded her essay with a message of support to fellow victims.
“I’m coming forward about my own experience to further express how common these assaults are in this industry and how important it is that we take action to fight against it,” she concluded.
For more on the Harvey Weinstein scandal and the actresses who have spoken out about harassment in Hollywood, watch the video below.