For Colored Girls actress Thandie Newton said that she recently came to terms with a shocking affair she had at the tender age of 16 with a film director 23 years her senior.
In an interview with InStyle magazine, Newton revealed that her six-year affair with director John Duigan started after she auditioned for his film Flirting, which starred Nicole Kidman. Newton said that Duigan took advantage of her innocence as a teen and that the relationship left her feeling self-destructive.
"I was a very shy, very sweet girl," she told InStyle. "I wasn't in control of the situation. Would I have liked things to be different? Sure. But I can now value myself more for the way I got through it. I don't see myself as a victim."
At the time of the affair, Newton never revealed to her parents what was going on. She later received therapy after the relationship ended. The reason she decided to discuss the relationship now is that she hopes "teenagers see they can resist and gain self-awareness."
Film directors taking advantage of young, aspiring actresses is nothing new in Hollywood. It's a shame Newton had to go through this at such a young age. We hope her story really does inspire young women with ambitions in the entertainment industry to stay true to themselves.
Read more at Daily Mail.
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