Jennifer Aniston calls out male 'narcissism' as she explores The Morning Show's #MeToo parallels
The new series explores the fallout when a TV anchor is accused of sexual harassment
Jennifer Aniston has said some men are narcissists for believing every woman wants to “sleep with them” in a joint interview with her The Morning Show co-star Reese Witherspoon,
Aniston, who has returned to TV for the first time since playing Rachel Green in 90s hit Friends, has reunited with her on-screen sister Witherspoon to star in Apple TV’s flagship streaming show.
The star, 50, plays a television anchor who must announce to the world that her co-host (played by Steve Carell) has been fired from the news network after allegations of sexual harassment are made against him.
The network heads are forced to find someone new to fill his place and settle on Reese Witherspoon's character, a blisteringly honest reporter.
Speaking about the show’s clear parallels with the #MeToo movement, Aniston told The Guardian: “There’s this absolute denial – ‘It was consensual, it was consensual’ – if you’re a narcissist to the degree a lot of these guys are. They think, of course every woman wants to sleep with me.”
“This is not an echo chamber of women talking about #MeToo,” Witherspoon added. “It’s actually a very gender-balanced conversation because we need men watching the show. Real change doesn’t happen unless the incumbent power structure accepts it.”
Witherspoon who, in 2017, revealed that she had been sexually assaulted by a director when she was 16, and said she was instructed by agents and producers to keep quiet about it.
The Legally Blonde star told the publication: “I wish I could tell you that was an isolated incident in my career but, sadly, it wasn’t. I’ve had multiple experiences of harassment and sexual assault.”
She added that she felt “guilt for not speaking up earlier” but did not do so because she was told that “silence was a condition of my employment.”
Both actresses, Aniston and Witherspoon worked with disgraced Hollywood executive Harvey Weinstein and expressed gratitude for the people in their team that never allowed them to be in a room alone with him.
Weinstein distributed Witherspoon’s 2002 film The Importance of Being Earnest and produced Aniston’s 2005 film Derailed and has since faced multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, which he has denied.
Witherspoon said: “Now I look back and I’m very grateful to those people who stayed in the room with me. What they knew, I don’t know,” says Witherspoon.”
The actresses both serve as executive producers on The Morning Show, which also stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Bel Powley, Billy Crudup and Mark Duplass.
