Charlotte Kirk condemns ‘hearsay’ about her role in Kevin Tsujihara scandal

Charlotte Kirk, the British actress whose leaked text messages have embroiled Warner Bros. Chairman Kevin Tsujihara in an affair scandal, is speaking out against her latest portrayal in the media, calling it “conjecture and hearsay.”

Kirk has been mentioned in a series of investigations by the Hollywood Reporter and has been linked to a number of Hollywood heavyweights, whom she reportedly pressured to put her in their films. Her alleged affair with Tsujihara is believed to have led to her small roles in Warner Bros.’ “Ocean’s 8” and “How to Be Single.”

On Wednesday, hours after the Hollywood Reporter published a new article further investigating her connections to producer Brett Ratner, his ex-partner James Packer and Millennium Films founder and Chief Executive Avi Lerner, the actress released a statement defending herself.

“I have remained silent. I can’t do that anymore,” she said in a statement to The Times. “It’s bad enough to be defined by others, but when the person they put on the page has no relationship to who I am, I feel compelled to speak out.”

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Kirk’s statement further appears designed for her to state, on the record, that she didn’t leak her text messages and perhaps plug her latest projects with director Neil Marshall, whom she reportedly moved in with at one point.

She also said that she was 19 in 2013 — when she is believed to have described in text messages a sexual encounter with Tsujihara. Earlier accounts linking her to the married mogul suggested she was older than that. She said on Wednesday that she was “possibly a little arrogant and definitely very naive” at that time.

“I acknowledge I may have made some poor choices and I’m sorry for that, but I’ve learned from my mistakes since then and have grown a lot, as a person, as a woman, and as a professional actor,” she said.

Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara.

(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Though Kirk previously denied that Tsujihara engaged in any inappropriate behavior, she didn’t deny having a sexual relationship with Tsujihara in the new statement. Nor did she dispute the authenticity of the text messages that reportedly led to AT&T-owned WarnerMedia to investigate the salacious allegations against the head of its movie and TV studio.

Read Kirk’s full statement below:

“A lot has been written about me over the past week, most of it conjecture and hearsay, and except for an initial statement made to The Hollywood Reporter, I have remained silent. I can’t do that anymore. It’s bad enough to be defined by others, but when the person they put on the page has no relationship to who I am, I feel compelled to speak out.

Firstly, I want to make it absolutely clear that I had nothing to do with the publication of this story. There are assumptions being made that somehow I was responsible for the release of the texts, and that is simply not true. When I heard that THR might publish it, I implored them not to, but obviously to no avail.

Secondly, these articles refer to events from 6 years ago, way back in 2013. I was a different person then; 19 years old, newly arrived in LA, possibly a little arrogant and definitely very naive. I acknowledge I may have made some poor choices and I’m sorry for that, but I’ve learned from my mistakes since then and have grown a lot, as a person, as a woman, and as a professional actor.

As for these latest rumors surrounding the ‘Hellboy’ movie, it’s nonsensical. Neil Marshall (Director/Producer), saw my audition and believed I was the best actor for the role, simple as that. The character of ‘Alice’ was written as a 26 year old East End girl with strawberry blonde hair and an attitude - that’s me in a nutshell! Avi Lerner (Executive Producer) supported Neil’s choice because he believed in the Directors vision for the movie. Unfortunately, they were both overruled by Larry Gordon (Producer) because he controlled the rights. At the end of the day, that’s show business, and instead I went on to play the title role in the feature film ‘Nicole & O.J.’ and starring in ‘The Reckoning’ a feature now in pre-production that I also co-wrote.

This is a speed bump and not a roadblock and will move beyond this. I will never stop fighting; fighting to define myself, fighting for the best roles and fighting for the career I love and was born to do.”