Charisma Carpenter has another important protagonist in her corner.
“Bring It On” star Eliza Dushku is the latest student of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” to support 50-year-old Carpenter, who alleged Wednesday that the creator of “Buffy” Joss Whedon, 56, “abused his power” and fostered an “increasingly volatile work environment.”
“CC, it hurts my heart and I’m so sorry to have kept this up for so long,” Dushku, who is no stranger to harassment battles, wrote on Instagram. “Your post was powerful, painful and painted a drawing that collectively we will never see or know about.”
Dushku played Faith, a rogue vampire killer, in front of Carpenter’s Cordelia Chase, both “Buffy” and her derivative, “Angel.” He joins a growing list of “Buffy” vets, including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Michelle Trachtenberg, Amber Benson and Emma Caulfield, to support social media, telling Carpenter, “I admire you, I respect you and I love you. “.
The 40-year-old actress from “Tru Calling” and “Dollhouse” has previously experienced toxic jobs. In 2018, Dushku alleged that “True Lies” cheat coordinator Joel Kramer sexually abused her when she was 12 years old.
Then came the bomb report that same year that revealed that Dushku secretly received $ 9.5 million from CBS in 2018 for the claims against which she was retaliated against and was overturned by “Bull” after complaining of alleged sexual harassment by leader Michael Weatherly on set.
“I often think of the saying,” We are as sick as our secrets, “Dushku continued in his message.” In fact, our secrets make us sick and keep us sick. What I’m learning more and more, and I’ve personally found most valuable, is that deep healing can only come from naming and divulging what really happened, the first step necessary (once someone is ready) to free us from our secrets, countless truths have kept us isolated, ashamed, and taken hostage ”.
Carpenter cited Ray Fisher’s unceremonious shooting as Cyborg from the upcoming film “The Flash” as a catalyst for his departure against Whedon. The “Justice League” actor had accused his director of being “brutal, abusive, unprofessional and totally unacceptable” to him and others on the set of the Warner Bros. superhero movie. The 33-year-old actor has retweeted Carpenter’s emotional post and called her “one of the bravest people I know.”
Carpenter’s and Fisher’s claims add to Trachtenberg’s accusations of Whedon’s “inappropriate behavior” toward the then-teen on the set of “Buffy,” and that there was a rule that said he was not allowed be in a single room ‘with her again.
Whedon representatives, who “separated” from HBO’s “The Nevers” in November, have not responded to requests for comments from The Post.
