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Tribune News Service
Tribune News Service
Entertainment
Peter Sblendorio

Jimmy Bennett says he felt 'powerless' due to Asia Argento's alleged sexual assault

Asia Argento's sexual assault accuser claims he felt "powerless in a way" due to the actress' alleged abuse.

Jimmy Bennett, who claims he was assaulted by Argento in a hotel room when he was 17, said on the Italian TV station La 7 that Argento was the one who initiated the sexual encounter in 2013.

"She started kissing me longer and longer ... and it started to feel to me that it was less of just a friendly thing and more of something she was trying to push or explore," Bennett told host Massimo Gilletti.

"It turned into her placing her hands on me and following that was when she pushed me onto the bed and took my pants off."

The appearance on the Italian network marked Bennett's first TV interview since his allegations against Argento, 43, emerged in August. The alleged act took place in California, where the age of consent is 18.

"The power that she had over the situation made me feel powerless in a way," he said.

Argento has denied the claims made by Bennett, which were first reported The New York Times, asserting she never had sex with the actor. The newspaper also reported Argento had quietly reached a $380,000 settlement with Bennett, which she claimed was agreed to by her late partner, Anthony Bourdain, due to concerns over the possible negative attention Bennett might bring.

Argento's friend, Rose McGowan, claimed in a statement a little over a week after the allegations emerged that Argento had admitted to sleeping with Bennett during a text-message conversation with McGowan's partner, Rain Dove.

Then earlier this month, a lawyer for Argento claimed the actress was sexually attacked by Bennett, and not the other way around, which Bennett's lawyer has denied.

Argento said last week that she contacted a law firm to seek legal action against McGowan over her claims after giving the actress a 24-hour deadline to retract her statement. McGowan did not publicly respond to the deadline.

Bennett and Argento starred together in the 2004 drama "The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things," in which Bennett played the Italian actress' character's son.

Argento became one of the leading voices in the #MeToo movement last year when she came forward to accuse Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault. She grew close with McGowan, who also accused Weinstein of sexual assault.

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