Male redemption arc: why Hollywood forgives abusive men

Content warning: This article contains extensive discussion of domestic violence and sexual abuse.

Isabelle Shaw

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Behind the glitz and glam, there is a long history of abusive men in Hollywood. With the rise of feminism you’d think times were changing. Yet a number of serial abusers ‘cancelled’ during #MeToo have already returned to the stage, screen, or behind the camera. And plenty of people have welcomed them home.

With money, influence, and other men vouching for them, abusive men are able to continue their careers, facing minimal consequences for their past behaviour.

The Depp vs Heard case

Hollywood’s forgiveness of male abusers is often accompanied by the punishment of their female survivors.

In 2020, Johnny Depp was convicted of domestically abusing Amber Heard in UK court. In a text conversation from 2013, Depp said: “Let’s drown her before we burn her!!! I will f*** her burnt corpse afterwards to make sure she is dead.”

Despite this, Depp recently garnered a standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance in Jeanne du Barry (2023). He has also signed a $20 million contract with Dior, the biggest men’s fragrance pact ever.

Regardless of the accusations, Hollywood was prepared to forgive and support Depp. They just needed to find the justification to do so. His winning of the defamation case in June 2022 against Heard, in US court, was seen as reason enough to forgive Depp’s previous behaviour.

Double standards in Hollywood

During and following the case, the representation of Heard as a liar and fanatic shows a stark difference in how Hollywood treats women. Before the defamation case, many called for her to lose her role in Aquaman 2, after Depp accused her of domestic violence. In fact, some suggested there was a double standard in favour of women since Depp lost his role in Pirates of Caribbean and Secrets of Dumbledore series.

“The acting industry repeatedly forgives powerful men…”

While both were ‘cancelled’ — many on social media wanted both of their careers to end — only one of the accused has been allowed return to the spotlight. Regardless of the evidence presented in court, Amber Heard garnered extreme hate on Twitter. While Depp received criticism, his return shows his reputation wasn’t as damaged.

Prior to his marriage to Heard, Depp was engaged to 17-year-old Winona Ryder, despite being 27 years old at the time. Actress Ellen Barkin also testified that her relationship with Depp had been “controlling” and spoke about his substance abuse problems.

History of abuse in Hollywood

Shia LaBeouf

The acting industry repeatedly forgives powerful men and their misconduct, allowing abuse in Hollywood to continue.

In 2020, actor Shia LaBeouf was sued for emotional distress and sexual battery by ex-girlfriend FKA Twigs, who gave an emotional account of the abuse she endured at LaBeouf’s hands.

He isolated her from her friends and was often jealous, accusing Twigs of cheating on him. She recounted how LaBeouf had climbed on top of her when she was asleep. When she awoke, he began to strangle her.

“he created a narrative as a distressed ‘method’ actor, who only behaved badly because of his art.”

LaBeouf released a public apology for his actions, blaming his alcoholism. His cancellation was short-lived, with many overlooking his abusive and aggressive behaviour towards women. In 2022, the actor announced he was writing an Auschwitz film with Abel Ferrara called ‘Padre Pio. 

Twigs says he created a narrative as a distressed ‘method’ actor, who only behaved badly because of his art.

Journalist Marjon Carlos points out the irony of LaBeouf being praised for supporting the #BlackLivesMatter movement — while he was abusing a Black woman.

LaBeouf is a successful, established actor. As a result, he faced no consequences for his treatment of FKA Twigs.

Louis C.K.

In 2017, Louis C.K. admitted to non-consensual masturbating in front of girls in 2002. Despite that, in 2020, he won a Grammy for his comedy show.

Louis publicly apologised and admitted he had “wielded power irresponsibly.” This apology was enough to earn his redemption, regardless of his comments on the incident. He said: “I like jerking off, I don’t like being alone, that’s all I can tell you.”

The Hollywood playbook for cancellation is well-curated. If you apologise and spend some time out of the limelight, old friends will have your back and you can regain your career.

Meanwhile, women are unprotected from powerful actors. Even when cases like Louis’ are brought to light, few concrete changes are made to prevent it from happening again and they rarely face legal repercussions. Instead, women are forced to accept the violence and lack of safety in their workplace.

Molly Ringwald is one of the many actors who left Hollywood, due to feeling uncomfortable on set. She explains how, from the age 13, men on set encroached personal boundaries and made her do scenes she wasn’t comfortable with.

Why does Hollywood forgive abusive men?

Many actors and directors are deemed worthy of forgiveness due to their embellished careers and purported creative talent.

When asked why she worked with convicted statutory rapist Roman Polanski, Kate Winslet said when “you put it to one side” he is an “incredible director.” Polanski had pled guilty to raping a 13-year-old girl. While Winslet later said she regretted the statement, often, the art of abusive men is seen as more important than the artist’s actions.

Winslet wasn’t the only one to forgive Polanski. In 2009, Hollywood stars signed a petition demanding he be released from jail. Notable names include Wes Anderson, Guillermo del Toro, Harrison Ford, David Lynch, Martin Scorsese, and Tilda Swinton.

Asia Argento, Xavier Dolan, Natalie Portman, and Emma Thompson are the only ones, of 100 signatures, to later express regret for signing the petition.

Polanski eventually earned a standing ovation for winning an Oscar in 2003. In 2020, he was awarded a Cesar (the French equivalent of an Oscar) for directing An Officer and a Spy (2019). Actress Adèle Haenel was so disgusted, she walked out of the ceremony and proclaimed sarcastically: “Bravo la pédophilie!”

False accusations

Some Hollywood actors have been taken to trial, only to be found innocent. In some instances, the false accusations have damaged their careers in the long-run, especially for smaller actors. This has given some weight to arguments from men who claim to be falsely accused and argue they are simply victims of a ‘witch hunt’. Unfortunately, it isn’t always a black-and-white issue when it comes to Hollywood.

“#MeToo should’ve been the chance to purge the industry of abusers…”

By exposing the large number of abusive men in Hollywood, #MeToo wanted to draw attention to how widespread and endemic the problem is. However, many powerful men in Hollywood have twisted the exposure of major actors to suggest men are victims of ‘cancel culture’.

While #MeToo should’ve been the chance to purge the industry of abusers, it just made them change tactics. Remember #NotAllMen?

Rape culture is endemic in Hollywood

Kevin Spacey and Woody Allen have both been accused of sexual abuse repeatedly. But because they were never charged, Hollywood has accepted their presence there, despite the mass amount of evidence against them.

By 2017 Spacey was accused of 20 cases of sexual assault, the most publicised being Anthony Rapp’s trial in which he accused Spacey of child abuse when he was 14. Spacey’s response was he has the “sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behaviour.” This was apparently enough to forgive the accused predator.

Hollywood continues to reward abusive, exploitative, and manipulative men. Instead of losing their power, they’re granted a redemption arc and a chance to start over. Many are on their fifth ‘second chance’. Those who hold the power necessary to abuse others are often the same people who hold the power to decide who gets fired and who doesn’t.

With enough power and influence in Hollywood, even the worst abusers can be forgiven.

READ MORE:

• EXPOSING ABUSE IN THE ACTING INDUSTRY: WHY IS IT SO PROMINENT?

• THE POWER OF WOMEN’S VOICES

• HOW MUCH DID SOCIAL MEDIA IMPACT THE DEPP-HEARD CASE?

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Featured image courtesy of Thea Hdc via Unsplash. No changes were made to this image. Image licence found here.