ACTOR CUBA GOODING Jr, already charged with groping three women, has also been accused of raping a woman in 2013, according to a civil lawsuit filed yesterday. 

In the complaint, registered with the Manhattan federal court and reported by several US media outlets, an anonymous woman accused the 52-year-old actor of raping her in a Manhattan hotel seven years ago.

After inviting her for a drink, Gooding — who won the 1997 Oscar for best supporting actor for his role in Jerry Maguire — took her up to his room.

The woman said the actor prevented her from leaving once he began undressing in front of her, then pushed her onto the bed and raped her twice even though she kept asking him to stop.

“Our client is making very serious allegations against Cuba Gooding Jr in her lawsuit which we have filed,” lawyer Gloria Allred, who is representing the plaintiff, said. 

Allred is seeking an unspecified amount in damages for her client.

“She looks forward to obtaining justice in a court of law,” Allred told AFP.

Gooding’s team denied the claims. “The allegations are false and perjurious,” his lawyer, Mark Jay Heller, told AFP.

“We believe the case will be dismissed.”

Several allegations

Since 2019, some 20 women have accused Gooding of inappropriate touching or sexual harassment.

He was charged with sexual aggression towards three of the women behind the accusations.

The actor’s trial in Manhattan was set to begin in April before it was postponed indefinitely due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is not known whether the woman who filed the civil suit for rape contacted the police or the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.

Gooding became known for his role in the movie Boyz n the Hood (1991). He more recently portrayed OJ Simpson in the mini-series American Crime Story: The People v OJ Simpson (2016).

Gooding’s case is one of several high-profile cases to come out of the #MeToo movement, which won a major victory in March when disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison.

- © AFP 2020

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