Ellen Page latest to disclose inappropriate behaviour by director

Ellen Page posted a heartfelt and frank post on her Facebook page this weekend, revealing that she had been “outed” as gay by the shamed director and producer Brett Ratner.

During a cast and crew meet and greet ahead of filming X-Men: The Last Stand, Ratner looked at a woman ten years Page’s senior and pointed to Page stating: “You should fuck her to make her realise she’s gay”.

Page, who was only 18-years-old at the time, wrote that she had “not yet come out” to herself, stating that although she knew she was gay, she: “did not know, so to speak”. She continued, saying: “We are entitled to come into an awareness of our sexual orientation privately and on our own terms”, adding that the public, aggressive outing left her with “long-standing feelings of shame”.

“We are entitled to come into an awareness of our sexual orientation privately and on our own terms”, adding that the “public, aggressive outing” left her with “long-standing feelings of shame”.

She is one of a number of high-profile women who have made disclosures in relation to Ratner, including Natasha Henstridge and Olivia Munn. These have taken place against the backdrop of the many allegations made against Harvey Weinstein and increased scrutiny of the abuse within the entertainment industry – which appears to be rife.

Page also described being taken out for dinner by a director when she was just 16-years-old. The director fondled her leg under the table, saying: “You have to make the move, I can’t”. She stated that she “did not make the move”.

Page also said that she was sexually assaulted by a crew member months later and was also asked by a director to sleep with a man in his late twenties and to tell them about it, all when she was only 16-years-old.

She used the post to draw attention to the fact that violence against women in society disproportionately affects, “low-income women, particularly women of colour, trans, queer and indigenous women”.

Page also described her involvement in a Woody Allen film, another man accused of sexual abuse, as “the biggest regret of my career”, adding that she was “ashamed” of this.