After George Takei was accused of sexual assault by former model Scott Brunton on Friday, a clip of the “Star Trek” actor’s recent appearance on “The Howard Stern Show” has gone viral in which Takei discusses an incident at his home that resembles the account put forth by Brunton in his accusation.
In the interview, which took place after the Harvey Weinstein scandal broke out, Takei and Stern discussed sexual harassment, including the accusations surrounding President Donald Trump. Stern then shifted the subject to Takei, asking, “Did you ever grab anyone by the cock against their will?” to which Takei remained silent.
“Some people are kind of… umm… skittish,” Takei responded after some awkward laughter. “Oh maybe… um… afraid and you’re trying to persuade.”
“Do we need to call the police?!?” Stern exclaimed. “What are you saying, George? You’ve never held a job over someone if they didn’t touch your cock?”
Takei said he did not do this, and when asked by Stern’s co-host, Robin Quivers, if this happened at work, Takei said it happened at home.
“So what do you mean?” Stern asked. “You mean some guy who was hesitating to have sex with you and then you gave him a gentle squeeze on the balls or something?”
“More than a gentle…” Takei laughed. “But it didn’t involve power over the other.”
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Brunlon said he met Takei in 1981 and went to his apartment with him. He says that after a couple drinks, he awoke to find Takei groping his groin through his underwear.
“I came to and said, ‘What are you doing?!’ I said, ‘I don’t want to do this.’ He goes, ‘You need to relax. I am just trying to make you comfortable. Get comfortable.’ And I said, ‘No. I don’t want to do this,’” Brunlon recounted.
“And I pushed him off and he said, ‘OK, fine.’ And I said I am going to go and he said, ‘If you feel you must. You’re in no condition to drive.’ I said, ‘I don’t care I want to go.’ So I managed to get my pants up and compose myself and I was just shocked. I walked out and went to my car until I felt well enough to drive home, and that was that.”
In response to the accusations, Takei said on Twitter he was “shocked and bewildered” by the claims and denied them.
“The events he describes back in the 1980s simply did not occur, and I do not know why he has claimed them now,” he wrote. “I have wracked my brain to ask if I remember Mr. Brunton, and I cannot say I do.”
Takei did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s requests for clarification on the Stern interview. Listen to the interview in the clip above.