Oscar winner Gina Davis' memoir was released yesterday and readers are excited to dive into what Davis describes as her "journey to badassery."
In the book titled Dying of Politeness, the actress shared stories from her childhood, through her modeling career to roles that shaped the woman she is today.
As a result of her experiences Davis created the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media in 2004.
Davis also revealed in the memoir she had an unsettling experience with actor and comedian Bill Murray during the making of the 1990 film Quick Change which Murray co-directed.
The first time she met Murray, they were introduced in a hotel suite. Murray greeted her with a massage device he relentlessly requested to use on her despite her many refusals.
Davis wrote:
"I said 'No' multiple times, but he wouldn't relent."
"I would have had to yell at him and cause a scene if I was to get him to give up trying to force me to do it; the other men in the room did nothing to make it stop."
"I realized with profound sadness that I didn't have the ability to withstand this onslaught—or to simply walk out."
In the end, Murray did "place the thing on [Davis'] back for a total of about two seconds."
She also recounted a time when Murray screamed at her for being late and continued to do so even when she was on set in front of "hundreds of cast, crew, curious passers-by." Davis had needed to wait for her wardrobe.
Davis opened up to The Times UK:
"That was bad. The way he behaved at the first meeting..."
"I should have walked out of that or profoundly defended myself, in which case I wouldn't have got the part."
"I could have avoided that treatment if I'd known how to react or what to do during that audition."
"But, you know, I was just so non-confrontational that I just didn't..."
Many users took to Twitter to share their thoughts.
Many had heard similar stories about Murray. They also felt Davis shouldn't have had to endure what she did.
\u201c@chrisrealtime @Variety I\u2019ll say this: I never yell. I also never smile. I don\u2019t like how either expression makes my face look. So I avoid doing both. Also, I agree. Yelling at work is unprofessional. Period. But you have to stand up for yourself in an industry where there is no HR department.\u201d— Variety (@Variety) 1665437964
\u201c@Variety Yep far too many ppl saying the same about him.\u201d— Variety (@Variety) 1665437964
\u201c@DuragYarmulke @Variety It\u2019s amazing how women just have to suck it up and pretend that they weren\u2019t harassed\u201d— Variety (@Variety) 1665497398
\u201c@TMZ @TooFab So many have said the same about him and some people think he's funny and quirky. The reality seems to be that he's a mean spirited, calculating bully and not funny at all.\u201d— TMZ (@TMZ) 1665506415
\u201c@Variety She shouldn\u2019t have had to do anything different!\u201d— Variety (@Variety) 1665439040
\u201cBill Murray is one of my comedy heroes, but treating *any* woman this way is indefensible. And Geena Davis is one of the nicest celebs I've ever met. I can't imagine wanting to mistreat her. Bill has gotten away with this behavior for too long.\nhttps://t.co/Zx0XlBEan3\u201d— Mike McGranaghan (@Mike McGranaghan) 1665443141
This isn't the first time Murray's behavior has been exposed by females in the industry.
Actress Lucy Liu revealed Murray hurled "inexcusable" and "unacceptable" insults on the set of the 2000 film, Charlie's Angels. Liu stood up for herself and "did not regret it."
In April, Murray was accused of inappropriate behavior toward a woman on the set of Aziz Ansari's film Being Mortal. Filming was shut down while the incident was investigated.
Murray acknowledged he was the reason for the shutdown.
Davis said she and Murray haven't seen or spoken to each other since shortly after the 1990 film was completed.
As of this writing, Murray has not responded to Davis' memoir.
@sama/X
