Richard Dreyfuss Accused of Exposing Himself to TV Writer

“I emphatically deny ever ‘exposing’ myself to Jessica Teich, whom I have considered a friend for 30 years,” actor responds

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A former co-worker of Richard Dreyfuss’ has accused the actor of exposing himself to her in the 1980s, which Dreyfuss denies.

Los Angeles-based writer Jessica Teich told Vulture that she decided to offer her story because she was “bothered” when the Oscar winner came forward with support last month for son Harry Dreyfuss, who said Kevin Spacey groped him when he was 18.

“When I read about his support for his son, which I would never question, I remember thinking, ‘But wait a minute, this guy harassed me for months,’” Teich said. “He was in a position of so much power over me, and I didn’t feel I could tell anyone about it. It just seemed so hypocritical.”

Teich said that the two were working together on the October 1987 TV special “Funny, You Don’t Look 200: A Constitutional Vaudeville,” with Dreyfuss enlisiting Teich to work on the script.

Teich said that Dreyfuss asked to meet her in his trailer one day and, when she arrived, he exposed himself to her.

“I remember walking up the steps into the trailer and turning towards my left … and he was at the back of the trailer, and just — his penis was out, and he sort of tried to draw me close to it,” she said. “He was hard. I remember my face being brought close to his penis.”

“I can’t remember how my face got close to his penis, but I do remember that the idea was that I was going to give him a blow job,” she said. “I didn’t, and I left.”

She added that he made numerous advances over their years of working together, and that he “created a very hostile work environment, where I felt sexualized, objectified and unsafe.”

In a statement to Vulture, Dreyfuss “emphatically” denied exposing himself. But he said he “became an a–hole” in the late 1970s and that he “flirted with all the women.”

“I emphatically deny ever ‘exposing’ myself to Jessica Teich, whom I have considered a friend for 30 years,” the “Mr. Holland’s Opus” star said. “I did flirt with her, and I remember trying to kiss Jessica as part of what I thought was a consensual seduction ritual that went on and on for many years.”

“I am horrified and bewildered to discover that it wasn’t consensual,” he continued. “I didn’t get it. It makes me reassess every relationship I have ever thought was playful and mutual.”

Numerous Hollywood figures have been accused of sexual misconduct in recent weeks, including Spacey, Harvey Weinstein, Louis C.K. and Ed Westwick.

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