As many inside and outside of Hollywood tell their own stories of sexual harassment and abuse in the wake of revelations surrounding Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Louis C.K., and others, actor Anthony Edwards has come forward to claim that he and his friend were molested by Broadway producer and theme-park designer Gary Goddard. In a post on Medium, Edwards describes meeting Goddard when he was 12, and how Goddard “quickly became a dominant force in my life,” acting as a mentor and role model. “My vulnerability was exploited,” he says. “I was molested by Goddard, my best friend was raped by him — and this went on for years. The group of us, the gang, stayed quiet.”
Edwards says that his mother asked him about rumors that Goddard was a pedophile when he was 14, but that he could not bring himself to tell her the truth. “The resulting damage to the emotional development of a child is deep and unforgivable,” he says of the experience of such molestation. “Only after I was able to separate my experience, process it, and put it in its place could I accept this truth: My abuse may always be with me, but it does not own me.”
Edwards, now 55, says that he ran into Goddard 22 years ago, and that Goddard allegedly expressed remorse when confronted by his actions. “I felt a temporary sense of relief,” Edwards says. “Temporary because when Goddard appeared in the press four years ago for alleged sexual abuse, my rage resurfaced.” Goddard was named in a pair of lawsuits from Michael Egan and an anonymous British man that also targeted X-Men director Bryan Singer in 2014, though Egan later withdrew his suit and the latter plaintiff also dismissed his suit. “I’ve learned a lot in these last four years,” Edwards writes. “Most importantly, I’ve learned that I’m not alone. One in six men have an abusive sexual experience before they turn 18. Secrecy, shame and fear are the tools of abuse, and it is only by breaking the stigma of childhood sexual abuse that we can heal, change attitudes, and create safer environments for our children.”
