PhotoDustin Hoffman and John Oliver tangled publicly on Monday night at a panel discussion where Mr. Oliver, the comedian and host of HBO’s “Last Week Tonight,” questioned Mr. Hoffman, the actor, about a statement Mr. Hoffman released after he was accused of sexual misconduct on the set of a 1985 TV-movie production of “Death of a Salesman.”The panel, moderated by Mr. Oliver, was held at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan by the Tribeca Film Institute to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the film satire “Wag the Dog,” which starred Mr. Hoffman. According to a report in The Washington Post, Mr. Oliver said that he was going to discuss the changing climate in the entertainment industry, where many powerful figures have faced precipitous consequences as accounts of their sexual misdeeds have been brought to light. In particular, Mr. Oliver said he would ask Mr. Hoffman about the account of Anna Graham Hunter, who wrote in an essay for The Hollywood Reporter that Mr. Hoffman had groped her and used sexually explicit language in front of her during the making of “Death of a Salesman.” At that time, Ms. Hunter was a 17-year-old high-school senior working as a production assistant on the TV film. Advertisement Continue reading the main storyMr. Oliver said the matter was “something we’re going to have to talk about” because “it’s hanging in the air,” according to The Post.

Source: New York Times December 05, 2017 16:42 UTC