Hollywood writer-director James Toback has reportedly been sued by 38 women who allege he was a “serial sexual predator” who assaulted numerous women over the decades, often luring them with the prospect of being cast in one of his movies.
Toback — whose directorial credits include The Pick-Up Artist and Fingers, and who was Oscar-nominated for his screenplay for Bugsy — has faced accusations of sexual misconduct since the Los Angeles Times spoke to the same number of women five years ago during the height of the #MeToo movement.
The women claimed the filmmaker enticed them with the prospect of working in one of his films before sexually assaulting them. Los Angeles prosecutors declined to file charges in five of the cases, saying the statute of limitations had expired for all of them.
The new civil lawsuit contains graphic allegations against Toback, including the claim that he sometimes blocked women from escaping or chased them when they tried to flee, before sexually assaulting them. In some instances, according to the filing, Toback allegedly masturbated in front of the women or on them, and then penetrated them without their consent.
The suit also names the Harvard Club of of New York City as a defendant, claiming the exclusive club served as Toback’s favorite venue to target women.
Attorneys for the plaintiff claim that Toback had a “Modus Operandi” that allegedly included approaching young women on the streets of New York and charming them with compliments while bragging about his Hollywood credits.
Neither Toback nor his representatives has yet to comment on the suit.
Toback has previously denied the accusation made against him, telling Rolling Stone magazine in 2017: “I find it offensive and insulting and disgusting, that people… Because it’s the opposite of the way I work. I don’t give my best friends parts unless they deserve them. Ever.”
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