17 is old enough to know who you want to have sex with. The law should be changed. Also he looks happy enough to be with her in the picture.
7
Based on the standards of the organization she leads, me too, she is guilty as accused and should never work again. Worse yet she committed the crime of rape. The silence on mainstream media is deafening because it doesn't fit their playbook. Time for these fanatical groups like me too, the Neo nazis, and antifa to go away. People wonder why Trump is at forty percent. Look at this hypocrisy playing out and I am not a Trump fan but I understand what I am looking at. Let's get back to courtesy and respect. Call me a sexist but when I see a gentleman offer a seat to a lady on a crowded subway, it's wonderful. Better yet when I offer my own seat. Good habits in small things lead to monumental change
5
TMZ has released the photo of the two in bed along with text messages of Argento's admission. Her statement circulating Twitter throwing the late Bourdain under the bus is absolutely vile. We all sadly know she is the reason he killed himself. He professed his love on national TV only to be humiliated and cheated on. Ottavia knows the truth. Argento is a seriously manipulative, twisted RAPIST desperate for attention.
23
The distance between legal sex and statutory rape in this instance is 10 months. Or 249 miles, from Marina del Re where Bennett lives to Primm, Nevada --or just over one hour, including taxiing times, by air to Las Vegas -- where the age of consent, as in most states and countries, is 16.
But did a sexual encounter even take place? Only Bennett says it does. I'm not a fan of Argento -- far from it -- but can one believe she so lacking in common sense as to open herself up to such a predicament? Further: He waited some 4 years, and made the monetary demands only after Argento went public about Weinstein and so would be more vulnerable to public criticism.
In her posts, Argento refers to Bennett as “my son, my love until I live.” One does not refer to a sexual partner as "my son."
The only actual evidence of a crime is Bennett demanding money to not make an accusation. That's blackmail.
9
I suppose that from a legal standpoint she had to deny the encounter. But she paid him $380K and, well . . . does anyone actually believe her? I wish she'd just come out and say,
"Yes, we had sex. It was nice and I know he enjoyed it. Sue me." But of course California had a bizarrely high age of consent, so legally she has to deny having sex. Pretty sad.
4
Never really heard of her until Anthony Bourdain and then the #me Too movement. Thanks for championing a cause Ms Argento at the cost of true victims who aren't in the limelight. Is this your 15 min of Fame so you could propell yourself to wider fame? You knew all this was going on but you kept it under cover while you were so busy 'helping' victims of sexual assault, mainly women. You have insulted and instilled even more distrust for people personally involved by the likes of the Weinstein's out there. Whether they be men or women or any identifying gender. You just degraded the honest people of the #meToo movement, to suit your agenda. As long as some of you get your close up, all's good in Follyhood. And such a nice touch from your comrade, Rose McGowan when she asks us to be 'gentle' with you. Weinstein is dispicable, and you just rose to his plateau.
14
Argento apparently was raped by Weinstein. She deserves our support , and he deserves our condemnation.
Argento apparently raped Bennett. She deserves our condemnation and he deserves our support.
We all should support METOO, but if we fail to condemn female abusers, and fail to support male victims, we lose all moral authority to condemn any abusers.
#believe the women...and the men.
21
Argento will have a tough time proving her innocence in the face of the Instagram texts and photos she posted.
“Waiting for my long lost son my love @jimmymbennett in trepidation #marinadelrey smoking cigarettes like there was no next week.”
“Happiest day of my life reunion with @jimmymbennett xox,”
“jimmy is going to be in my next movie and that is a fact, dig that jack.”
I wonder how she made the decision to put him in her movie and why they had to meet in a hotel room in order for her to make that decision.
A message to Hollywood: a hotel room is never an appropriate place to conduct business, especially business decisions where one person holds the power to give or take away a job—as Argento did here. Even without the sex, she is guilty of acting inappropriately.
Another thing, “The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things,” was a sick movie. Read Roger Ebert’s review of it. It will make you wonder.
12
Look at the pictures-he sure looked happy! Statutory rape it may have been, but sexual assault? NO WAY!
8
At one point The Times says Ms Argento denies having sex with Bennett, but then provides a quote where she denies a ‘sexual relationship.’ There’s a semantic difference there, one of which Bill Clinton is intimately familiar.
From the Instagram selfie, it’s clear something sexual happened between Argento and Bennett. That, or they had just finished a pillow fight. I’ll let people choose the more likely possibility on their own.
That said, Ms Argento keeps digging herself in deeper. Will the authorities relentlessly pursue her for statutory rape? What about this movie deal she promised Bennett, a-la Weinstein? Am beginning to wonder whether Bourdain’s suicide didn’t relate in some way to the hole Argento was dragging him into.
8
How convenient that Argento dumps the whole "payoff idea" on the now dead Anthony Bourdain.. Surely there is a text or a email that will corroborate her story....
6
As much of a villain as Ms. Argento purports Harvey Weinstein to be, at least he didn't blame a dead guy.
Don't get me wrong, I do not condone any of Weinstein's antics nor do I think he is not guilty of all the charges against him. But to attempt to put the 'blame' for making this payment on a dead man is distasteful and shocking to say the least. She needs to shut this down lest she will discredit the entire #metoo movement.
Perhaps she should start a new group #ITOOAMASCOUNDREL
9
Those of us who support METOO can keep our moral authority to condemn sexual predators only if we are willing to condemn female predators and support male victims.
#believe the women...and the men.
8
Bourdain’s estate was only $1.2 million. So where does he go off giving Argento $380K? It doesn’t add up and sounds like a lie. Let’s ruin a few more lives while we’re at it.
13
I understand the desire to make sexual assault or sexual harassment into something gender neutral, but it just isn't. For almost any 17 year old male, this event would be a dream come true.
Men and women are equal but we're not the same.
That he was traumatized such that he couldn't earn money any more.....sheeesh.
19
@Jonathan Micocci
Are you mad, sir? We can’t mention how the carnivorous male gaze actually functions without being dishonest!
2
@Jonathan Micocci Times have changed.
4
If this meeting between Ms. Argento and Mr. Bennett had occurred in more than half of the other states or had occurred in Europe, he would have been in the age of consent.
At the time he seemed to be a willing participant and I know of no evidence that he acted out of fear. Somehow later their relationship went south ...
Sorry, but to me this looks like an attempt by Mr. Bennett to shake down Ms. Argento and possibly Mr. Bourdain.
21
What's happening to today's youth?
When I was a 17 year old we could only fantasize on the experience that Mr. Bennett claims he had. And certainly the last thing in the world that would occur to me, or my fellow residents in the freshman dorm, would be to blackmail the woman.
But that was a long time ago.
16
He said, she said . . . who are we to believe?
2
@Cone How about him....good ole TMZ has texts with her admitting she had sex with him. And pics of them laying together in bed......Sounds like she is a fraud.
12
@Cone
He was underage
1
@E
Harvey Levin is a lecherous toad whose proximity to Donald Trump is well established.
1
(Mr. Weinstein’s lawyer Benjamin Brafman issued a statement on Monday saying that “the sheer duplicity of her conduct is quite extraordinary and should demonstrate to everyone how poorly the allegations against Mr. Weinstein were actually vetted and accordingly, cause all of us to pause and allow due process to prevail, not condemnation by fundamental dishonesty.”)
That's terrible reasoning. The truth is that Weinstein behaved badly and she behaved badly. Just because she engaged in bad behavior doesn't mean she wasn't also abused. It does mean that she's the pot calling the kettle black, though.
15
" Ms. Argento said that she had never had sex with Mr. Bennett."
Reminds me of "I have never had sex with that woman, Ms; Lewinsky."
We know how that panned out. Stay tuned...
8
@May http://www.tmz.com/2018/08/22/asia-argento-17-year-old-boy-in-bed-photo-...
Why would she (or Bourdain) pay, many have asked, if she were not guilty?
Because he threatened to "expose" the supposed act -- for which the only "evidence" are selfies showing no sex, indeed, no hint of sex, just the two sitting upright, smiling, with pictures on the wall in the background -- knowing that his claim, even if never proven, would harm Argento's career. He picked a sum of money that Argento, a #MeToo leader as well as an actor, might accept without battle as not being worth the alternative, the negative publicity that would follow during even a successful defense, should it not be paid.
His career was tanking, he needed the money, the 6 year statute of limitation was about to run out.
All the circumstances, unsubstantiated claims and absence of evidence, point to a crime, all right -- not of statutory rape, but of blackmail.
As an aside: In over half the states and most foreign countries -- including Canada and 21 European countries -- the age of consent is 16.
21
I actually believe the photo in question; of which Argento obtained copyright through her payment; is of them both unclothed in bed together. That is the one that was sent with the story to the NYT. The one you are referencing was the one she publicly posted to instagram.
1
@Texas Liberal I was thinking the exact same thing. He says sex with her messed him up at 17. I’d have considered it more likely that playing the sexually abused child of a prostitute at 7 or being a child actor in the first place would be what messes up one’s mind.
2
@Texas Liberal- the whole point, the whole reason this is in the news, is that if it were a 40 something male and a 17 y/o female, it would be game over. This is about finding consistency in the #MeToo movement. For anyone to make the arguments you;ve just made without applying them to all the #MeToo cases is outright hypocritical. period.
2
If their relationship was maternal in nature, then one would think that he could just ask her for the money if he was in financial straits.
So, she wants us to believe that even though he threatened her with claims that she sexually assaulted him, she took the "high road" and just decided to give him the money even though she was innocent?
Wow! Now I'm insulted!
11
Well... who didn't see this coming? The part that bugs me about some of the bigger names in the crusading entity is they benefited at the time from what they now are calling misdeeds. It's gonna be a tougher day in court for some of them when Harvey's attorney starts the cross-examination. They didn't have to take the movie part if one of the perceived prerequisites was the performing of a personal favor. And this one, who went on with the personal favors for four years?
Probably better spokespersons might be those whose careers were stymied by interference, not those who signed confidentiality agreements along with taking payoffs (on top of the salary for the movie parts.)
8
They have at least three pictures of themselves in bed that day. How can she deny this? Fantasy. And other women coming to her defense and saying "be gentle" with Argento? One thing for sure her denial shows she learned a lot from good old Harvey.
17
I Just think that American people just should move forward of that hashtag #metoos slogans & Oprah’s show-offs #timesup speeches - JUST GROW UP! Forget the sensationalism that promotes that ambitious figures w/ cheap speeches and SIMPLY CREATE STRICT LAWS THAT PREVENTS MISCONDUCT & HARASSMENT in job environment, AUDITIONS, CASTINGS, JOB INTERVIEWS... the rest is tweets and hashtags...
13
Q: Why does this remind me of
" I did not have sexual relations with that woman,"
A: People lie most often about sex
5
I believe the kid--not this predator adult. She should be in jail.
14
No one would pay anywhere near what she did for “nothing”.
21
@SW Blackmail, comes to mind.....Those selfies do not show any untoward activity just two people fully dressed sitting on a bed smiling into the camera. The young man seems to have blown already the over 2 million dollars he says he earned as a child.
1
Ronan Farrow interested in doing a follow up to his New Yorker article? I thought not.
30
Ha! That'll be the day!
3
@Epistemology
Give him a minute.
7
Can she please just go to jail. the moment the sex pictures they took are public, she's guilty of perjury as well.
Have some dignity, bow out now.
11
@shark Perjury, u say? No way. She did not lie under oath.
7
How sad that she blames a dead man, Mr. Bourdain, for paying off what she claims is a false claim of sexual assault against a minor. To be honest, I knew this was coming. It had too. There are too many men, myself included, who have been the victim of sexual assault at the hands of men and sexual discrimination at the hands of women. Sexual abuse of any kind is not a gender issue. And I’m finding it really difficult to believe that the #MeToo movement is nothing more than satisfying the need for revenge by celebrities. Look at this story for proof. Or the story of the female college professor who was sexually intimidating her PhD student, only to have many women “leaders” come forward in her defense, despite the overwhelming evidence against her. Or had they even bothered to learn of the details of the case? Was it simply a matter of defending one’s own? For the good of the movement? Sounds like a good old boys club to me, except with women. I would feel less angry at Asia’s retaliation if she had taken some personal responsibility for this and not blamed Anthony Bourdain for this whole mess. I would also feel less angry about this if the #MeToo movement was more forthcoming with honest stories of everyday folks who are victims, and not just celebrities. And I would appreciate them even more if they quit covering for perpetrators like Asia only to have the New York Times break the story. Time to grow up #MeToo. ANd thanks New York Times for publishing the stories.
37
@Terry Neal writes:
"I would also feel less angry about this if the #MeToo movement was more forthcoming with honest stories of everyday folks who are victims, and not just celebrities."
Every woman I know (and a couple of the men) has a story about abuse or harassment. Ask your friends, relatives, acquaintances, and I'm sure you'll hear many more.
The NY Times has run similar articles about people in all walks of life -- in restaurants, offices, the public and private sectors. The movement isn't about celebrities; it's about everyone.
13
This is probably way too much to ask, but I wish someone from Anthony Bourdain’s camp, who knows something about this situation, would speak up. It’s so horrible that Asia has dragged him into this mess. He’s not here to speak for himself so someone else needs to.
52
"The aftermath of the 2013 encounter had left him betrayed and precipitated a number of emotional problems," seems to be the sole justification for describing what happened as a "assault."
Really? And it took him not only 5 years but, apparently, Argento's claim against Weinstein to trigger those problems?
Oh, but right, Bennett was at the time of the "assault", at 17, still but a boy, a child. So, of course, sex with an older sexy woman (which, btw, many 17-year old "boys" would die for) had to be an "assault," at least in the prurient minds of prurient non-teenage reporters, and their no-teenage readers
We better stop lying to ourselves about the sex lives of teenagers or, eventually, the hypocrisy is going to catch up with us. If (when) it does, I wonder if stories about our collective hypocrisy will generate the same number of clicks as stories about this, that or the other perverted evildoer.
25
@J. Cornelio. Please do not assume that all 17 y.o. boys want sex with an older woman. There r many reasons that some do not. A boy might be gay, religious, or confused.
9
@J. Cornelio, There’s the problem of hypocrisy. Argento has been critical of older men pressuring young women for sex, yet she, in middle-age, initiated sex with a kid barely 17-years old.
10
@Babylonia In 41 states the age of consent is 16 or 17. If they had met in Las Vegas (with an age of consent of 16), no problem.
1
Why did this go from the accusation to "Asia Argento Denies" in a few hours? Didn't Rose McGowan say we should always believe the victims?
I'm not saying Argento isn't correct. Maybe she is. The evidence isn't on her side yet, but maybe it will be. Still ... if "believe the victims" is the criterion, why did the NYT so swiftly move to give voice to the (apparent) perpetrator, and silence the victim?
I'm a supporter of much of the #metoo movement, but have never loved the rushes to judgment. I think most of the people harmed by the tales of women and men deserved it. Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Louis CK.
But a few others have been thrown away more questionably. Al Franken, most notably. Wow, and again. Al Franken. Not just because I support him politically. But he was mostly charged by right wingers at first, then railroaded out of the Senate. I hated that. Talk about a witch hunt.
31
@CBF
The NY Times is simply reporting the news as it unfolds. Bennett's accusations come to light. Argento denies that the incident happened. News.
It has also been reported that Harry Weinstein denies all accusations of improper behavior. Again -- just a news item, not "giving voice" to the accused perpetrator.
If and when these people are tried, the verdict will be reported, too.
5
@CBF The victim has chosen to not speak up. NYT is not silencing him. He did not want to respond yet.
It's actually smart of him to speak up only after Asia tries to deny what she allegedly did.
5
Wow, blame your much beloved boyfriend who did nothing but sweetly (and nauseatingly) extoll your virtues and questionable talent in every interview he gave, revive your career and otherwise benefit from his hard won, stellar reputation AND pay your hush money for you. You stay classy, Asia.
86
So the picture of Asia in bed with Jimmy was what? A rehearsal shot for a film that was going to be made after his 18th birthday?
16
A formal legal agreement specifying, after an initial lump sum, monthly payments until a certain date. To 'help him out.' Unlikely.
13
Someone is not telling the truth and, hopefully, the truth will come out in due time, probably in a court of law. If Ms. Argento is lying, she really has done damage to the Me too movement with her lie and hurt a young man, a child really, in the process. If Mr. Bennett is lying, he is showing what someone will do for money when they no longer are in demand for acting roles and is willing to destroy a person's reputation for it.
Sadly, I feel for Anthony Bourdain here who can't defend himself on this whole matter.
24
I bet Bourdain's estate is involved. The payments have not been all made. If they were coming from Bourdain, they are part of his estate. That is a lot of money for a man whose estate was worth $1.2 million (excluding his $3.35 million condo, which had a mortgage of $1 million.)
9
@Serendipity somehow almost no media outlets can understand that wealthy people can and will put most of their assets in trusts. Mr. Bourdain did so and was worth much more than the cash mentioned in his will. Not your fault—the reporting has been a letdown here.
5
“Mr. Weinstein’s lawyer Benjamin Brafman issued a statement on Monday saying that ‘the sheer duplicity of her conduct is quite extraordinary and should demonstrate to everyone how poorly the allegations against Mr. Weinstein were actually vetted and accordingly, cause all of us to pause and allow due process to prevail, not condemnation by fundamental dishonesty.’”
Nothing about this is okay. If due process is to be expected for anyone, then let it be found in court and not the town square.
10
thou who cast the first stone...
2
First of all, noone really cares about little Jimmy Bennett who saw a chance to replenish is dwindling standard of living by resorting to blackmail. For a fleeting moment Asia Argento had the public's respect as leader of a valid movement. But Little Jimmy has given the story an ironic twist and it appears that Argento's strategy for redemption is to shift blame onto Anthony Bourdain. He suggested paying the hush money....to save his own reputation no less. She grossly miscalculated because in this country it's Anthony Bourdain who has the ardent and loyal fanbase. She's just given new strength to the theory that he's gone because of her. So now she's a pariah.
24
I wondered about the same thing. I wonder if poor Mr. Bourdain killed himself because of this Asiago/Bennett mess. He probably couldn’t stand the embarrassment this would cause him. He knew about life well enough to know things have a way of coming out. He was a decent kind man from what I heard about him. Very sad.
11
Oh, that magical word, that human -only trait called: DENIAL. Gotta love it. I cringe whenever i hear someone saying we are the most intelligent species on this planet... "intelligent design" my....
1
our culture has come to this?
9
If you believe Argento I have a bridge to sell you
26
How disturbing this is. Liars on both sides. The truth will keep coming out. The whole thing is crumbling down.
4
@Sally L. Do you fancy yourself Donald Trump? Liars on both sides?
If you read her attorney’s documents, written to her, it’s rather obvious Bennett is telling the truth and Argento is lying. Look at the photographs. Read her posts. Look at how she groomed him for rape. Look at what it has done to his life. Those of you who want to reduce it to “both sides-ism” obviously have a strong tolerance for statutory rape. In my book that’s just disgusting. Shame.
12
@ADN No, I am saying the opposite. I am saying that she is lying and that people like Weinstein are lying. Please don't assume what I am saying. You have completely misread my post. Please be careful what you say and don't jump to conclusions. Thank you.
1
So now it was Mr. Bourdain who paid Bennet off more than a quarter million dollars out of his own pure heart?!!!. And it was his idea to do so! Is this another story of an older man besotted with a much younger woman allegedly in need of help and protection who extorts some money from him to solve those problems? Alas, then the besotted foolish man finds out that she has a younger lover and has made a fool of him. There is a story of this sort in NYTimes today (and many in the Reader's comments). Neither Ms Argento nor Mr Bennet seem too credible. The soap opera continues. Next installment?
17
Mr. Bennett seems perfectly credible to me, thank you. Anybody who knows anything about “grooming“ and how it’s done, and looks at what she did from the time that he was a little kid, would believe every word he says. And I’m sick of hearing about his asking for money instead of going to the press. Why don’t you ask Paltrow why she didn’t go to the press? Why don’t you ask McGowan? What’s happening to this young man is too reprehensible for words.
13
@tdbAnd she puts the onus for agreeing to make payments on her dead boyfriend. It was his idea because he wanted to protect his reputation. Very convenient and very fishy.
2
Mr. Bennett's story sounds strange in the extreme, and the whole course of events smells more than a little like a scam.
Whether or not he was intimate with Ms. Argento when he was 17 and she 37, and confused afterwards (although warm and extremely friendly soon thereafter -- "miss you momma!" -- which makes it sound like things between them were just fine), it is ludicrous for him to claim that his income fell from $2.7 million in the five years before the alleged encounter to $60,000 a year since, "because of the trauma that followed the sexual encounter".
His income fell because he didn't get acting or music jobs and didn't otherwise make more money.
And given the reports of him suing his parents (the kind of thing that doesn’t make either Bennett or his parents look like fine, upstanding credible citizens), it looks more and more like this is a scam, wherein he saw an opportunity to make money by embarrassing her, especially given her prominence in @MeToo. This is called extortion.
And why did she pay him? Because he could embarrass her.
There are plenty of people out there, male and female, who have endured repellent sexual harassment, and they should be heard, and believed. This sounds more like a demonstration of the worst of human nature -- mercenary, conniving, grasping, threatening -- than it does a cry of pain, an injured soul seeking redress.
31
@Rudolph yes because innocent people cough up mid six figures? Umm wrong.
2
@Rudolph If she is not lying and didn't make nothing in 2013 and hadn't nothing to hide - so, when she eventually became a target of extortion she should have given the example - being transparent and exposing the situation publicly instead of keep the subject in the shadow through a giant amount of money...
After her statement it was also exposed text messages between her and AB that contradicts her statement - will she also deny that(?)
Payments of 10000$ during a long period of months - for help?! Who accepts that kind of extortion if she didn't have nothing to Hyde??
Or probably - if nothing really happened - and she agreed w/ that absurd business of giving money from AB to Bennet to "help" - that money could also help her... because she was "broke"(she wrote by message to AB). Such a role model, doing charity with the money of rich guys to feed a scheme of extortion (?)...
6
@Rudolph
It's RAPE, statutory RAPE. She paid him because she RAPED him.
He sued his parents because they embezzled from his trust fund.
13
I believe Bennett. And I’m disgusted that Argento is now trying to drag the late Anthony Bourdain into her sordid story. She seems to be a very disturbed person which means she’s damaging the #metoo cause/movement. Once you crossed the line from victim to abuser, you lost my support and my sympathy.
35
The allegations against Ms. Argento must be investigated and justice done, but they should not obscure the allegations against Weinstein or that a most sexual harassment and crime is against women or that is easier to perpetrate against them because they are generally less powerful than men and because societal norms often favor men (at least straight men). This also means that sexual harassment and crime against women has greater societal impact than sexual harassment and crime against men.
3
Despicable. She really doesn't know when to quit, does she. My, but what a weak woman she is: victim in a continuing relationship with her "rapist" and then the victim of a 17-year-old boy who decides to blackmail her. She then is rescued by a world-renowned chef/lover who facilitates payments to the blackmailing teen. Enough of this already. She is just an attention-seeking, disgraceful liar. Unbelievable!
50
@BLH A pattern of a manipulative character is generally insisting of being victim.
10
Wow, one thing these comments underscore is that people love to pile on.
12
The cases of Weinstein and Argento are not comparable. Assuming the allegations can be proved, the apparently consensual seduction of a 17 year male by an older women, not in a position of power, is not the same as a powerful man coercing younger women into sex acts.
7
Are you kidding me? Do you even remotely see the hypocrisy of that line of thinking? She had no power, authority, or station above him? A 17 year old kid? What world do you live in?
18
@Mynheer Peeperkorn '...an older women, not in a position of power...' Living in denial of one's power and an absence of power are two fundamentally different things.
1
@Mynheer Peeperkorn
Regardless of the circumstances, she committed statutory rape. According to the law, he was not old enough to give consent.
2
(s)he who lives by the sword...
I imagine that the rule of law looks pretty good to Ms. Argento now.
3
@JsBx I hope the rule of law will FINALLY begin to hold sexual predators accountable. Weinstein, Polanski, Allen, Trump, & others ALL deserve to be locked up.
3
@Penny White, The rule of law exonerated Allen, twice in two states.
This story becomes more sordid and sad by the day.
My heart goes out to Bennett, whose name and accusations are front page news when he did not come forward publicly with this information himself.
The alleged involvement of Anthony Bourdain, who is not here to speak for himself (possibly owing in part to the tawdry situation Argento created), breaks my heart for the second time since his suicide.
The truth will out, Ms. Argento -- have no doubt.
27
So much for her "mother-son"relationship claim, unless incest is included.
Bourdain appears to be the primary victim here. Faced with his girlfriend's infidelity, moral hypocrisy, and indulging her request to pay her victim over a third of a million dollars trying to keep her own misdeeds private, the realization that the woman he'd loved & supported was so corrupt may well have been the trigger for his suicide.
Maybe Bourdain's daughter sues Argento for a wrongful death?
66
Is she throwing Anthony Bourdain under the bus? What a way ensure her name lives forevermore in infamy.
39
Can someone explain how technically you force a man to have sex? There is no way to have sex with a man unless HE wants it, right? Why all the fuss then?
1
@Janet
Read Bennett's account of the incident.
He was a child and she an adult when they met and worked together. Prior to their reunion they had had a long-standing relationship based on affection and trust. The emotional components of this situation make it more complex than you imply.
14
@Janet A grown woman with power over a young man can use her power over him to coerce him into a sexual relationship. Young men can respond sexually even when horrified & repulsed. This adds to the trauma of the abuse. It can definitely happen.
21
Same could be said about women who are raped without putting up a fight. Haven’t we moved past victim shaming/blaming?
10
Since having sex with a minor is a criminal act. I don’t see any way she could have admitted it.
Would have been better if she had kept quiet though.
7
Will Asia Argento cast herself in the lead of a remake of "The Summer of 42" where a lonely war wife seduces a 14 year old boy?
Will Bennett play opposite?
Will he agree to $380,000 as payment?
It's got potential, and morality depends on ROI.
4
@Lawrence I thought that movie was sick. As a grown woman, I would NEVER put my hands on a 14 year old boy. If I did, I would deserve to go to prison.
5
@Penny White, I wouldn’t put my hands on a 17 or 18-year-old either, or any boy 20+ years younger than me.
1
Val Kilmer was devastated ,angry and wondered why Bourdain committed suicide. Now everyone knows. Asia Argento is a real piece of work (I can't use the other word). I guess she forgot about the photos in her attempt at fabricating.
31
Please..... this is so ridiculous. This kid should be sued for blackmailing instead he threatens to sue after he received already $$$$ for having sex with an attractive woman. Situations likes this are in no way comparable to the scenarios that happened in Mr. Weinstein’s office. I may be wrong but it does not sound that furthering his career was contingent on sleeping with her. Shameful!
17
If she is to blame 1% for the loss of Anthony Bourdain, I will never forgive her or her actions. #ME-ONE.
24
@Lyn Elkind, But even before this news, we all knew she is to blame for his anguish that made him decide to take his life. This is just one more thing she subjected him to that we didn’t know about yet.
4
Sheesh, Asia Argento seems never to have heard that when you're already deep in a hole the first thing you should do is stop digging.
First, she flat-out denies that the claims of her young accuser could have any merit whatsoever, thereby eliminating all possibility that she & he might have had different experiences - & thus formed different memories & interpretations - of what happened at their intimate, booze-fueled get-together at the Marina del Ray Ritz Carlton when he was 17 & she was 37.
Then to make matters worse, she says the boy she played "mommy" to when he was 7, & whom she still referred to as her "beloved son" a decade later, has subjected her to “a longstanding persecution." In other words, once again the male is the villain, while Asia is his victim - she's his long-suffering victim, too.
Finally, she says paying the young man off was all Anthony Bourdain's idea - & thus his fault. So she's also the victim of a man conveniently not here to explain himself or contradict her. In her calculations, dead men deserve no respect.
Argento's inability to admit she might once have done something wrong & caused harm as a result is unfortunately matched by her refusal to consider that her perceptions & positions today could also be wrong. Unconscionable.
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Oh! How the tables have turned by this one fateful comment.
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Asia Argento truly shows the darker and hypocritical side of humanity and the "me too" movement; loudly denouncing Harvey Weinstein while she's seducing young boys . No , she does not get a pass , having been allegedly victimized by Harvey Weinstein (at 21 she was an adult) does not excuse nor be used as an excuse for her predatory behavior towards Jimmy Bennett . A new low to bring Anthony Bourdain into the picture since he can neither confirm nor deny her statement .
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Please remind me who cares? Sex and sexual initiation is messy and unfathomable. She's a liar. Big surprise! These are not moral leaders and the offense is when they caste themselves as such.
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If we have to believe the women... then we have to believe the men too.
What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.
When an adult Gay male has sex with an underage male it is considered sexual degeneracy... but when an adult woman has sex with an underage male it is considered erotic generosity? What kind of homophobic double standard is this?
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@TOBY True. Who is claiming we don't have to believe male victims? Kevin Spacey's victims were believed. Support #MeToo!!!
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What a great point in regards to the homophobic double standard!
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@Penny White, A lot of people are claiming that.
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So besides being a hypocrite, and a liar, Ms. Argento also manipulated Mr. Boudain into paying her hush money for her sexual escapdes. Not a day after pictures come to light of her two timing Mr. Boudain in Rome with a younger man and an argument the tweets of which she pulled down because Mr. Bourdain kills himself. She sleeps with Weinstein for a while and now looks like she got a payday and some favorable publicity by speaking out.
She is a disgrace of a woman, a human being and is partially culpable of the death of Antohny Boudain. the METOO movement should move to condem this woman as fiercely as they have condemmed other such reptilian predators
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@Edwin Pritchett. You’re right, the #metoo movement should condemn Argento, but they won’t because that doesn’t follow their narrative.
The hypocrisy is staggering.
She felt sorry for him....so she paid him $380,000. Hi Asia....meet Roman and Harvey. I sure you will get along fine
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"Ms. Argento, who for five days has not responded to The Times’s requests for comment, forcefully denied Tuesday..."
Five days to work up a forceful denial. Okay...
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I'm sure 17 year old Jimmy was really traumatized after the "alleged" sex with a beautiful woman who he purportedly idolized. Nothing that a few hundred thousand can't fix though right? I mostly feel bad for Bourdain and hope this wasn't the tipping point for him. I suppose her speaking out against Weinstein gave little Jimmy some ideas...
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@Kevin, No, it was her cavorting with her 28-year-old lover in front of the world to stick it to him and telling him it was his fault that was the tipping point for him.
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Is that Instagram shot the alleged bed selfie?
It looks like 2 people sitting upright, picture hanging on the wall behind them.
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What a noble woman, she handed out $380,000 to help out a financially strapped young man, and she did it to honor her dead boyfriend as well.
(And shame on those who insinuated that she was cheating on Bourdain with a young Frenchman in Rome at the time of his suicide.)
Weinstein's defense has much to learn from her.
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@Yellow Moon Profile Picture
Are you being sarcastic about the comment on cheating on Anthony, given what later happened, it is VERY plausible.
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@Yellow Moon Profile Picture
Well,not quite. He paid for her hush money (or to help out the poor young man), she did not pay to honor Bourdain. Read the article.
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@Jeff Mike Hoss Johnson It’s more than plausible. She did it. Photos, and witnesses to them staying at the hotel together.
So, what is the justification for revealing the alleged rape victim’s name?
He didn’t come forward himself.
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@Objectively Subjective
His name is revealed because the story is about his lawsuit, not about the crime.
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@Jeff Mike Hoss Johnson, Except he didn’t file the lawsuit. They settled out of court. The story is about an accusation of sexual assault of a minor.
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Funny how the MeToo queen is lying like Trump about paying off her victims. I guess these people believe it's better to deny it than face the consequences.
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Like I said before, it's about power and privilege; not gender, color or ethnicity. Denials come first, then mea culpas, then rehab, etc. etc. etc.
White men have had all the power for so long. That is why they are the overwhelming bad actors in this mess.
The ratios will change with the changes in the demographics of power, wait and see.
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Thus the danger of trial, conviction, and execution by media in the course of 24 hours. Yes, it's entirely possible she assaulted the young actor after getting him drunk, and then paid him hush money. It's also entirely possible he made the story up, to extort money from her and Mr. Bourdain, and that they paid him to go away because it was ten times cheaper to do so than to argue the matter in public. (He's hardly the first child actor to face dwindling fortunes after puberty.)
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@Matthew M, Anthony Bourdain would not have paid $380,000.00 to someone for a fictional accusation. That just wasn’t him. She lied to him, painting herself as the victim (like always) of the kid, and besotted with her, he believed her and rescued her (like always). Her appealing to his machismo and wanting to be her knight in shining armor did him in.
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This is an extremely problematic area, assuming the allegations are true. If he was raped, the age of consent is irrelevant. On the other hand, if the argument is that he did not possess the requisite maturity to make the decision to have sex, it is relevant, but only because California has decided that you have to be 18 to make that decision.
I've handled numerous statutory rape cases, many with kids close to the same age where the boy is prosecuted for consensual sex with a girlfriend a few months younger. Many of these boys, who are now men, are still on sex offender lists, often while married to the woman they "raped". The fact that Mr. Bennett could have consented in Nevada or Washington State, but not in California or Oregon, is patently absurd and lends itself to ridiculous outcomes, both criminally and civilly, that haunt people for life.
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Age difference was more than a few months here though. He often called her “mom” doesn’t that seem a bit different?
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@Mike Fine, we'll call it incest.
@Dave, This case is much different, but I agree with your premise about those kind of cases. Under our puritanical laws today, both of my great-grandfathers, one grandfather, and my father would be on sex offender lists for their relationships with my grandmothers and mother.
My first instinct is to believe accusers, it has to be. That said, it is always appropriate for anyone to dispute claims of this nature if untrue, and we should always remember it is not impossible (but it is rare) for an accused to actually be innocent. When Argento has dozens of accusers, like Cosby and Weinstein, her claims of innocence will be far less believable, assuming this boils down to the likely "he said, she said."
Most critically for the MeToo movement, if she assaulted Bennett, it does NOT mean her assault by Weinstein did not happen. If she did it, I hope she quickly owns that truth and submits to justice - she expects that from the system and should be willing to pay the same price.
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@HG, False accusations have always existed but used to be more rare than they are now. In this age of hysteria, hyperbole, hypersensitivity, exaggeration, and psych self-diagnoses by assorted neurotics and victim complex indulgers, it isn’t rare anymore.
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$380,000 is a lot of money to say you're innocent. Something's not right, the story is not all out yet ...
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@Narragansett
Yes, she probably was guilty of doing that.
@Narragansett
I think there is NOT more to say, she did what he said she did, and there are photos to prove it. Right now googling Harvey Weinstein and Asia, I do not show that he made payments to her to keep her quiet and as for the comment, that these are only head shots, the Times may be unable to print more sexually graphic ones.
"The Times had been sent documents, through encrypted email by an unidentified party"
The unidentified party bit concerns me. Does anyone think this could be pushback from those against the MeToo movement? I'd want to know who is making this allegation.
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@Nina
It could be Bennett or his lawyer, perhaps since Anthony has died and it was in monthly payments, the payments are not being made, if they could not be made they did this to shame her.
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@Nina, No. Argento isn’t the #MeToo movement. It isn’t Weinstein either because Argento is no legal threat to him. It had to be someone with access to the photos and those had been given to Argento. As disliked as she is, especially in Italy, maybe it was someone she knows sticking it to her because they think she deserves it.
It is creepy that Asia Argento is including in her "defense," a deceased person who can neither confirm nor deny her allegations. How convenient for her.
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Just good lawyerin’. No coincidence at all.
@Duane Stillwell, Lyn didn’t say coincidence. Lyn said creepy and convenient.
One does get the impression that all is not kosher with Ms Argento’s story.
Considering that she now claims Anthony Bourdain paid off Jimmy Bennett for her, (who it appears negotiated a better deal than Stormey Daniels), and that Mr Bourdain left a fairly modest estate to his daughter; I hope Ms Argento does the right thing and pays that $360 thousand dollars back into Mr. Bourdain’s estate. Somehow I don’t think she will.
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if she didn't do anything wrong, why she decided to pay? and why o why bring Bourdain into this? Her statement clarifies nothing.
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After seeing "The Heart Is Deceitful " I also believe Mr.Bennett.
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Who in God's name is "Asia Argento"?
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It is extremely unfortunate that after denying she had sex with Jimmy Bennet Asia Argento implies that Anthony Bourdain made the payments to Bennet to protect himself from the taint of guilt-by-association. Asia Argento is a fighter... why would she not fiercely fight back against Bennett’s allegatations if they were untrue?
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In the past, I've believed the women coming forward.
And now, I believe Mr. Bennett.
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“I have never had any sexual relationship with Bennett.”
Past echoes of such categorical denials still ring in our collective consciousness. We know all too well the history that followed for those who made them.
She is presumed innocent.
The spectacle of her defending herself in LA even as her accused is preparing for his trial on the opposite coast will provide for surreal and sordid viewing.
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Well this is all rather interesting, isn't it ?
What exactly compelled Ms. Argento to pay $380,000 to Mr. Bennett ?
Welcome to the Enquirer.
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@Socrates -
"Ms. Argento was romantically involved with Anthony Bourdain, the culinary and travel personality who killed himself in June. In her statement, she said he had helped her navigate the claim and finance the payments, which began with a $200,000 lump sum in April."
So who paid the money, Ms. Argento or Mr. Bourdain?
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