Eighteen members of the cast and crew of One Tree Hill have issued a joint letter accusing the creator of the hit series, Mark Schwahn, of sexual harassment.
The letter, co-signed by some of the show's main stars including Hilarie Burton and Sophia Bush, was published in Variety, and details how Mark Schwahn's predatory behaviour was an open secret among cast and crew and something that they had to regularly deal with.
They penned the letter, published by Variety, after one of the show's writers, Audrey Wauchope, tweeted a thread over the weekend bringing to light the toxic atmosphere that existed on set due to his actions. She describes how he, amongst other things, would brazenly show naked photographs of an actress he was having an affair with to male staff members; would make lewd comments towards the majority of female staff members and would rub their hair and massage their shoulders.
Moving on. Men on staff were shown naked photos of on an actress he was having an affair with. Naked photos she didn't know were being passed around . Naked photos they didn't want to see. This is such a violation,both to the actress and to the men forced to look and participate
— Audrey Wauchope (@audreyalison) November 12, 2017
Sometimes we wouldn't luck out and he'd just squeeze his disgusting body in between us and put his arms around us, grinning. He pet hair. He massaged shoulders. I know he did more but not to me so they're not my stories to share.
— Audrey Wauchope (@audreyalison) November 12, 2017
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The letter begins by saying, "All of the female cast members of One Tree Hill have chosen this forum to stand together in support of Audrey Wauchope and one another," and saying that "Mark Schwahn’s behaviour over the duration of the filming of One Tree Hill was something of an 'open secret.'"
It then went on to describe how many of the women on the show were "manipulated psychologically and emotionally" and that they often felt physically unsafe in the workplace and were coerced into not bringing any of these issues to light. It also states that due to their experiences at the hands of Mark Schwahn more than one of them is still seeking treatment for post-traumatic stress".
It seems only a good thing that more and more people who previously felt unable to voice their experiences of abuse throughout the entertainment industry are being emboldened to speak out about the systemic atmosphere of sexual predation that pervades it.
As of the time of writing, Mark Schwahn has yet to issue a response to these allegations.
