Jeremy Piven issues statement after Entourage sexual misconduct claims surface

Jeremy Piven “unequivocally” denies allegations brought against him by Ariane Bellamar, who claimed Monday on Twitter that the Entourage star sexually assaulted her multiple times.

“I unequivocally deny the appalling allegations being peddled about me. It did not happen,” Piven said in a statement to EW. “It takes a great deal of courage for victims to come forward with their histories, and my hope is that the allegations about me that didn’t happen, do not detract from stories that should be heard.”

Bellamar, an actress and former reality star, described her alleged experience with the Emmy-winning actor in a series of tweets. “Member when you cornered me in your trailer on the #Entourage set?” she began. “Member grabbing my boobies on the [couch] without asking??” After elaborating further, she clarified her allegation: “Jeremy Piven, on two occasions, cornered me & forcefully fondled my breasts & bum. Once at the [Playboy] mansion & once on set.” She also added the hashtag #MeToo.

Bellamar is best known for starring in the reality series Beverly Hills Nannies. In a later tweet, she wrote that Piven should not deny her allegations because HBO has them “on [TV] together.” Bellamar also claimed Sprint could have records of his allegedly “abusive, explicit texts.”

Earlier Tuesday, HBO and CBS, which airs Piven’s current show Wisdom of the Crowd, issued statements.

“Today, via the press reports, is the first we are hearing about Ariane Bellamar’s allegations concerning Jeremy Piven,” HBO said. “Everyone at HBO and our productions is aware that zero tolerance for sexual harassment is our policy. Anyone experiencing an unsafe working environment has several avenues for making complaints that we take very seriously.”

“We are aware of the media reports and are looking into the matter,” CBS said in its statement.

Piven starred in Entourage for all eight seasons, taking home three Emmys for Comedy Supporting Actor. He reprised the role of Ari Gold, a volcanic Hollywood agent, in the recent movie sequel to the series, which was panned by critics and underperformed at the box office. Piven completed his fourth season as the titular character in PBS’ Mr. Selfridge last year, and currently plays the lead role in CBS’s procedural Wisdom of the Crowd.

Bellamar’s accusation comes amid a wave of sexual misconduct allegations being made against Hollywood power players, which began with the downfall of Harvey Weinstein earlier this month. On Sunday, Kevin Spacey was accused of making unwanted sexual advances toward then-14-year-old actor Anthony Rapp, prompting Netflix to halt production on the sixth season of House of Cards.