Film Panel

Karen Domineau… Aidy Bryant

Viola Davis… Leslie Jones

Marion Cotillard… Cecily Strong

Debette Goldry… Kate McKinnon

[Starts with New York Film Festival intro video] [Cut to the set]

Karen Domineau: Hello and welcome to the 2017 New York Film Festival actress round table. Tonight, our topic is sexual harassment in Hollywood. First, we have Oscar winning actress and Harvard’s 2017 artist of the year, Viola Davis.

[Cut to Viola Davis]

Viola Davis: Happy to be here. Well, not happy, but you know, I’m here.

[Cut to Karen Domineau]

Karen Domineau: Next, another Oscar winner, Marion Cotillard.

[Cut to Marion Cotillard]

Marion Cotillard: I’m tiny, French and pissed off.

[Cut to Karen Domineau]

Karen Domineau: And joining us again is Hollywood legend, and winner of the Humphrey Bogard good sport award, the incomparable Debette Goldry.

[Cut to Debette Goldry]

Debette Goldry: Oh, wow! What a beautiful hospital this is.

[Cut to everybody]

Karen Domineau: Well, let’s begin with the elephant in the room. In light of the news about Harvey Weinstein, have you ever experienced sexual harassment in Hollywood?

Marion Cotillard: Of course, yes.

Viola Davis: Yes, absolutely.

Debette Goldry: Oh, have I ever been sexually harassed, good Friday, where do you want me to start? A woman being harassed is Hollywood, right? Everything old is new again. Producers are abusing starlets. There is Nazis marching in the street. And suddenly, nude pantyhose are on trend. I have never felt more at home. When’s polio coming back? That’s going to be fun.

Karen Domineau: Now, just hours ago, it was announced that Weinstein was kicked out of the Motion Picture Academy. Did any of you have personal run-ins with Weinstein or other producers?

Marion Cotillard: Um, one time, a producer asked me if I was comfortable with nudity. But it turns out he meant his own.

Viola Davis: One time, a producer asked me for a massage. When I refused he threw 10 or 12 phones at me. Then I realized he was trying to knock my shirt off.

Debette Goldry: I actually did have one meeting with Harvey, okay? I was invited to his hotel room. And when I arrived, he was naked hanging upside down from at that monkey bar. He tried to trick me into thinking his genitals were actually his face. It almost worked. The resemblance is uncanny.

Karen Domineau: Why is it that you think this keeps happening?

Viola Davis: The problem is the culture. There’s no accountability.

Marion Cotillard: Yes. I think men either don’t see it, or they choose not to see it.

Debette Goldry: Yeah. Of course, men cover up for other men. It’s a real you scratch my back, I’ll keep mum about the girl you drowned at your pool party situation.

Karen Domineau: Now, many actresses have commented that there is a whisper system to warn each other about potentially threatening men. Does that ring true to you?

Marion Cotillard: Yes, it’s horrible, but yes it’s true.

Debette Goldry: Yeah, yeah. Back then, we had a secret code among us actresses to warn each other about creeps. The code was ‘Her raped me’. That way, if any men were listening, they would tune us right out. Easy peasy.

Karen Domineau: Did you ever feel like you could go to your male co-stars for help?

Debette Goldry: Hmm. Well, you know, I remember I was doing two days of voiceover work on Alfred Hitchcock’s, “The Birds.” Because originally, the birds were going to be funny and talk. Anyway, Hitchcock comes in the booth, puts his whole fist in my mouth. In his defense, I was very blonde at the time. So, I turned to Rod Taylor. I was like, “Help me out.” And he shook his head and he was like if I can’t save Tippi Head Ron from having her head attacked by real birds, I’m sure as hell not saving you.

Karen Domineau: What do you think keeps women from speaking up?

Viola Davis: Women who speak up get called crazy. It seems like more people believe the moon landing was fake than believe woman.

Debette Goldry: Well, Violin Daveed, I’d hate to break it to you but the moon landing was faked. I was in the cast. I was Buzz Aldrin standing. We had the same waist size. That was a fun set.

Karen Domineau: Is it reassuring that men are starting to speak out in support of their female co-stars?

Marion Cotillard: Yes, you know, but I hate this, “Oh, I’m upset because I’m a father of a daughter.” You know what? You should be upset because you’re a human being.

Debette Goldry: Yeah. You’re right, Macaroni Capa Cabana. Having a lady in the family doesn’t make you some kind of a hero. I mean, even Hitler had a sister. Her name was Paula Hitler. Shy girl. She got outshone at home. I have a daughter too. At least that’s what the nuns told me before they snatched her away. Gosh, those nuns are fast.

Karen Domineau: And where do we go from here?

Debette Goldry: May I speak. Violence against women, it didn’t just happen. This is everywhere. Dammit! It’s about time we take it seriously. My Pandora’s box is open now. And Pandora’s pissed. Who’s with me?

[no one raises their hand]

No. I’m asking, who are these people? [pointing at Viola Davis and Marion Cotillard] I blacked out. Are these the angels? Is it my time?

Karen Domineau: Well, that’s all the time we have for today.

Debette Goldry: I’ve been to the moon, you know?

Actress Round Table

Karen Domineau… Aidy Bryant

Marion Cotillard… Cecily Strong

Keira Knightley… Margot Robbie

Lupita Nyong’o… Sasheer Zamata

Debette Goldry… Kate McKinnon

[Starts with 2016 New York Film Festival: Women’s Round Table video bumper] [Cut to five women sitting at a round table.]

Karen Domineau: Hello and welcome to the 2016 New York Film Festival Actress Round Table. Now, today our topic is women in Hollywood and Hollywood in women. Joining me are some of the industry’s leaders. To my left, Academy Award winner, Marion Cotillard.

Marion Cotillard: Bonjour, Thank you.

Karen Domineau: Star of the imitation game, Keira Knightley.

Keira Knightley: Thank you. Actually, so great to be here supporting my fiml.

Karen Domineau: And her film ‘Queen of Katwe’ is in theatres now, Ms. Lupita Nyong’o.

Lupita Nyong’o: Thank you for having me.

Karen Domineau: And we are thrilled to have with us today, a Hollywood legend whose career spans eight decades. She has worked with Humphrey Bogart, Cecil B. DeMille and Alfred Hitchcock to name a few, the great Debette Goldry.

Debette Goldry: It’s a pleasure to be aiive.

Karen Domineau: Well, let’s get started now. As women, what are some of the unique challenged you’ve faced in your film careers.

[Cut to Marion Cotillard and Keira Knightley]

Keira Knightley: Well, the roles just aren’t there. I mean, everyone wants to cast you as the girlfriend, mother, beautiful girlfriend, beautiful mother.

[Cut to Lupita Nyong’o and 5]

Lupita Nyong’o: Exactly. Everyone asks, “What are you wearing?” But nobody asks, “What are you thinking?”

Debette Goldry: Yeah. Everyone who gives you drugs to wake you up, drugs to sleep.

[Cut to everybody]

Karen Domineau: I’m sorry. What?

[Cut to 5]

Debette Goldry: Well, um, back at MGM they’d give me opioid injections in my toes to keep my quiet between takes. And then, they have a little man run over to give me a shot of enfilmin to say my line. “Stop hitting me with that shovel, Clark Gable.” You know. And then, what? More opiuim. You girls tell me what it is.

[Cut to Keira Knightley]

Keira Knightley: No, we don’t. Is that it? The thing that happened?

[Cut to 5]

Debette Goldry: Well, sweetheart, with opium, you never really know, do you?

[Cut to Karen Domineau]

Karen Domineau: Um, Debette brings up a good point. Though, have there been moments where you’ve felt you’ve been treated differently because you are a woman?

[Cut to Lupita Nyong’o and 5]

Lupita Nyong’o: Oh, of course. I’ve had so many meetings where the men hit on me. It’s so disgraceful.

Debette Goldry: Ah! I gotta agree with little Peter No-no over here. I once had an audition where the producer said, “Have sex with me and you’ll get the part.”

Lupita Nyong’o: Oh my god! What did you do?

Debette Goldry: I had sex with him and he gave me the part. It was a fair trade.

[Cut to everybody]

Karen Domineau: Okay, um, let’s pivot a little. Right? Women in this industry are often not paid as much as the men. So, how have you managed to advocate for yourself financially?

[Cut to Keira Knightley]

Keira Knightley: I’m so glad you brought this up because yeah, I’m able to get 5 million now, but before I–

[Cut to 5]

Debette Goldry: [interrupting] $5 million! Wow! Wow! No, then they used to pay me in broaches. They had it in my contract that I had to entertain our troops for free. And I went and I got over there, I found out it was for the other side. Long story short, I ended up flapping my toots for a bunch of crowds. But that’s Hollywood baby!

[Cut to Keira Knightley]

Keira Knightley: Wait, you, um, you stripped for Nazis?

[Cut to 5]

Debette Goldry: I did what I had to do to support our boys.

[Cut to everybody]

Marion Cotillard: I’m sorry, I would like to say something.

Karen Domineau: Okay. Thank god.

[Cut to Marion Cotillard]

Marion Cotillard: It will pay for the actresses is part of the solution, but the main thing we need is more women writing the parts.

[Cut to 5]

Debette Goldry: Women writers? You’d have to teach them how to read. They actually tried to teach me how to read once by putting peanut butter in my mouth, and then they remembered that’s how you make it look like a horse is talking. So they gave the part to a horse.

[Cut to 5 and Karen Domineau]

Karen Domineau: I don’t even know where to begin responding to that.

Debette Goldry: [looking at Lupita Nyong’o] Well, to answer your question little Peter, I did wind up pregnant.

Karen Domineau: Okay, she didn’t ask that, neither did I.

Debette Goldry: And to cover it up, they force me to marry a chimp. I said to them, I don’t want that thing pumping around on top of me but turns out, okay, the chimp was homosexual. So, we lived a very peaceful life together. Best friends. But then, the little baboon ran off with my broaches. Man!

Karen Domineau: Okay! That’s all the time we have.

Debette Goldry: Wait, I know what that means. Alright, your crowds get to kick while they can.

[5 slowly opens her jacket.] [The End]