EXCLUSIVE: Young Sheldon actress Ava Cantrell reveals she was assaulted by a man in Hollywood who grabbed her by the neck and refused to let go and says half the men in the industry have ignored the MeToo movement
- Actress Ava Cantrell, 17, exclusively told DailyMailTV a man grabbed her neck and she had to fight him off when he refused to let go in a shocking attack
- 'I had to physically pull myself away from what he was doing,' she said
- The Young Sheldon actress did not reveal where the attack happened or who the attacker is, but the man is believed to be in the entertainment industry
- The child star also said the move toward women equality in Hollywood is progressing 'too slowly' one year since the #MeToo movement began
- She says that about 'half the men' in Hollywood are respectful to women, but she has seen 'more strong, prominent women roles'
- Cantrell says that having the conversation about women's equality is the first step and very important one
Young Sheldon actress Ava Cantrell has revealed she was assaulted by a man in a shocking attack and says that half the men in Hollywood have ignored the MeToo movement.
In an exclusive interview with DailyMailTV, Cantrell, 17, says that a man grabbed her neck and refused to let go.
The starlet said she had to shout at the man and push herself away to release his grip and prevent the situation from escalating.
‘I first said really assertively “don’t do that”. And then it took more and I said “please let go”. And that didn’t work,’ she told DailyMailTV.
‘In the end I had to physically pull myself away from what he was doing.’
Cantrell, who plays Molly on CBS show Young Sheldon, did not name the man, who is believed to work in the entertainment industry, or reveal where the attack happened. She also decided against reporting the incident to police.
Actress Ava Cantrell, 17, exclusively told DailyMailTV a man grabbed her neck and she had to fight him off when he refused to let go in a shocking attack. 'I had to physically pull myself away from what he was doing,' she said
But the child star said she is worried that, one year on from the beginning of the MeToo movement, the shift towards equal treatment of women is 'moving too slowly', adding that only 'half the men' in the TV and movie industry are respectful to the opposite gender.
‘I still run into not so understanding and disrespectful men,’ Cantrell said. ‘I’ve been in a small way physically assaulted and stuff like that. Just kind of micro-aggressions that I feel like, this is the normal, this is what I deal with all the time.
‘But then nowadays people are saying this is not the normal and it’s not okay. So there’s still some men that are having to catch up.
‘Nobody in my circles ever done anything like that to me. I only surround myself with really great people. But the people out of my circle, it’s kind of like I can’t expect that sometimes. ‘
Cantrall said she feels frustrated that she and other women still have to put up with disrespectful and violent behavior, and that change was ‘slow moving’.
‘I feel like why is this still going on, it’s about time,’ the actress said. ‘You don’t want it to be a slow moving process but it is. It’s one person at a time and behavior changes slowly.'
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The Young Sheldon star advises women to call out men who are disrespectful to them, but added that apologies are rare.
‘Stand your ground. Push back,’ she urged. ‘People are going to push you everywhere, all the time. Mentally, physically, verbally, in every way.
The child star also said the move toward women equality in Hollywood is progressing 'too slowly' one year since the #MeToo movement began and said about half of men in the entertainment industry are respectful to women
‘I stand up for myself and I don’t usually get an apology. If you do that in the first place, I don’t really see the person apologizing.
‘I hope that that can start. There could be recognition and look back and think “maybe that wasn’t the right thing to do, I should listen to her.”’
Speaking at the 2019 Roger Neal Oscar Viewing Dinner at the Hollywood Palladium, Cantrall told DailyMailTV that despite being attacked, she’s also seen a change in Hollywood for the better since the MeToo movement began.
‘Even from a year ago I’ve seen a huge jump. It’s showing in the media. People are writing shows that are represented in the right way,’ she said. ‘More strong, prominent women roles. Just talking about it is the biggest start we can have right now.’
The young actress said she is hopeful that in the next decade equal treatment of women will be ‘the new normal’.
‘I hope that we don’t have to scream loud about it. I hope that we don’t have to ask for it. I would love for people to not have to think about it, just for it to be the new normal,’ she said.
The child star, who has already been working in the industry for a decade, added that she is delighted that CBS recently commissioned Young Sheldon for two more series.
‘It is incredible. It says a lot about the show. I think it is fantastic,’ she said.
