LENA DUNHAM IS facing backlash for defending a writer for her show Girls who has been accused of rape.
According to The Wrap, actress Aurora Perrineau has filed a report with police accusing a writer for Dunham’s show Girls of raping her in 2012, when she was 17 years of age.
Perrineau says that she woke up to find Murray Miller on top of her after meeting him on a night out with some friends, and did not consent to having sex with him.
Miller has denied the allegations, claiming Perrineau’s legal team contacted him seeking monetary damages before going to police.
Lena Dunham and her screenwriting partner Jenni Konner later released a statement saying they were standing by him:
While our first instinct is to listen to every woman’s story, our insider knowledge of Murray’s situation makes us confident that sadly this accusation is one of the 3% of assault cases that are misreported every year. It is a true shame to add to that number, as outside of Hollywood women still struggle to be believed.
Dunham has previously been vocal in her support of women speaking out on sexual assault, and her defence of Miller has been widely criticised.
Actress Asia Argento, who has accused disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein of rape, said Dunham wrote her an email of support just a few weeks ago.
Dunham later said that she believes in holding up those ‘who have held her up, who have filled her world with love’.
In August of this year, she tweeted: “Things women do lie about: what they ate for lunch. Things women don’t lie about: rape.”
