Marie Claire UK Marie Claire UK
  • Fashion Fashion
      • Fashion
        • View all Fashion
        • Fashion Trends
        • Shopping
        • Watches and Jewellery
        • Fashion News
  • Beauty Beauty
      • Beauty
        • View all Beauty
        • Fragrance
        • Hair
        • Make Up
        • Skincare
        • Nails
        • Marie Claire Beauty Awards
  • Health Health
      • Health
        • View all Health
        • Fitness
        • Nutrition
        • Female Health
        • Wellbeing
  • Life Life
      • Life
        • View all Life
        • Opinions
        • Travel
        • Sustainability
        • Weddings
        • Money & Work
        • Competitions
  • Culture Culture
      • Culture
        • View all Culture
        • TV and Film
        • Celebrity News
        • Books
        • Royal News
  • Vouchers Vouchers
      • Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Mint Velvet
        • Karen Millen
        • H&M
        • nobody's child
        • ASOS
        • ARKET
        • MANGO
      • Designer Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Reiss
        • THE OUTNET
        • SSENSE
        • Mytheresa
        • Liberty London
        • Selfridges
        • Farfetch
      • Accessories
        • View all Vouchers
        • AllSaints
        • Aspinal of London
        • Charles & Keith
        • River Island
        • FitFlop
        • Kate Spade
        • Vagabond
      • Jewellery
        • View all Vouchers
        • Pandora
        • Abbott Lyon
        • Goldsmiths
        • Beaverbrooks
        • Astrid & Miyu
        • Swarovski
        • Angara Jewellery
      • Beauty
        • View all Vouchers
        • Sephora
        • Cult Beauty
        • Space NK
        • Dyson
        • Clarins
        • Look Fantastic
        • Clinique
      • Activewear
        • View all Vouchers
        • Lululemon
        • Gymshark
        • Sweaty Betty
        • Nike
        • adidas
        • New Balance
        • Helly Hansen
  • NEWSLETTER Signup to our newsletter
  • logoCreated with Sketch.
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • Women in Sport 2026
    • Marie Claire Masters
    • Spring Summer 2026
    • Nail Trends 2026
    • Best Investment Bags
    • Best Perfumes
    • Digital Issues
    • Women Who Win
    1. Culture

    Minnie Driver and Alyssa Milano just personally explained rape culture to Matt Damon

    ‘Sexual harassment, misconduct, assault and violence is a systemic disease. The tumour is being cut out right now with no anaesthesia. Please send flowers.’

    Jenny Proudfoot's avatar
    By Jenny Proudfoot
    Published 18 December 2017 In News

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    matt damon Minnie Driver
    (Image credit: Rex)
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    ‘Sexual harassment, misconduct, assault and violence is a systemic disease. The tumour is being cut out right now with no anaesthesia. Please send flowers.’

    The past two months have seen Hollywood consumed by sexual harassment and assault allegations, with a huge amount of women coming forward to accuse Hollywood heavy weights from Harvey Weinstein to Dustin Hoffman.

    Another high profile figure to be accused of sexual misconduct is comedian Louis C.K - accused by five women. He was brought up in a recent ABC News interview with Hollywood actor Matt Damon while talking about the #MeToo movement and it's safe to say that Damon's controversial comments didn't go down so well.

    ‘I do believe that there’s a spectrum of behaviour, right? And we’re going to have to figure — you know, there’s a difference between, you know, patting someone on the butt and rape or child molestation,’ the actor explained. ‘Both of those behaviours need to be confronted and eradicated without question, but they shouldn't be conflated, right?’

    He continued: ’I don't imagine he's going to do those things again. You know what I mean? I imagine the price that he's paid at this point is so beyond anything that he - I just think that we have to kind of start delineating between what these behaviours are.’

    You may like
    • Million Women Rise March In London Why Do We Keep Rolling Out the Red Carpet for Men Found Responsible for Sexual Violence?
    • Olivia Rodrigo performing on stage in a babydoll dress that sparked online debate, later prompting the singer to speak out about the sexualisation of girlhood and double standards facing young women. “We Really Normalise Pedophilia in Our Culture”: What Olivia Rodrigo's Babydoll Dress Backlash Reveals About Girlhood
    • Louise Thompson is campaigning for a Maternity Commissioner following the traumatic birth of her son. “It Is One Of The Grossest Failings In Humanity That Women Are Treated Like This”

    His comments have not gone down well, with actress Alyssa Milano taking it upon herself to explain rape culture to the 47-year-old Academy award winner.

    ‘Dear Matt Damon,’ the actress posted to her Twitter feed. ‘It's the micro that makes the macro. We are in a “culture of outrage” because the magnitude of rage is, in fact, overtly outrageous. And it is righteous.

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    ‘I have been a victim of each component of the sexual assault spectrum of which you speak. They all hurt. And they are all connected to a patriarchy intertwined with normalized, accepted -- even welcomed -- misogyny."

    She continued: ‘We are not outraged because someone grabbed our asses in a picture. We are outraged because we were made to feel this was normal. We are outraged because we have been gaslighted. We are outraged because we were silenced for so long. Sexual harassment, misconduct, assault and violence is a systemic disease. The tumour is being cut out right now with no anaesthesia. Please send flowers. #MeToo.’

    Soon to follow suit was Hollywood actress and Matt’s ex-girlfriend, Minnie Driver, who took to her Twitter account to post, ‘Gosh it’s so *interesting how men with all these opinions about women’s differentiation between sexual misconduct, assault and rape reveal themselves to be utterly tone deaf and as a result, systemically part of the problem (* profoundly unsurprising)’.

    Jenny Proudfoot
    Jenny Proudfoot
    Social Links Navigation
    Contributing Features Editor

    Jenny Proudfoot is an award-winning journalist, specialising in lifestyle, culture, entertainment, international development and politics. After working at Marie Claire UK for seven years - rising from intern to Features Editor - she is now a freelance contributor to the News and Features section.

    In 2021, Jenny was named as a winner on the PPA's '30 under 30' list, and was also listed as a rising star in journalism.

    Read more
    Million Women Rise March In London
    Life Why Do We Keep Rolling Out the Red Carpet for Men Found Responsible for Sexual Violence?
    Olivia Rodrigo performing on stage in a babydoll dress that sparked online debate, later prompting the singer to speak out about the sexualisation of girlhood and double standards facing young women.
    Celebrity News “We Really Normalise Pedophilia in Our Culture”: What Olivia Rodrigo's Babydoll Dress Backlash Reveals About Girlhood
     
     
    Louise Thompson is campaigning for a Maternity Commissioner following the traumatic birth of her son.
    Life “It Is One Of The Grossest Failings In Humanity That Women Are Treated Like This”
    Andy Burnham and Marie-France van Heel entering 10 Downing Street
    Fashion “Are We Just Jealous?” Victoria Moss Unpacks the Sexist, Ageist Commentary Around Marie-France van Heel’s Victoria Beckham Dress
     
     
    Latest in Culture
    Notting Hill Carnival
    Culture The Agenda: How to Spend Your Finite Free Time Well This Summer
    B _ W - Woman reading book with wine in natural sunlight - TVS
    Culture 9 of Britain's 10 Bestselling Novels Begin With a Dead Woman. I Asked Authors, Literary Experts and a Criminal Behavioural Analyst Why
     
     
    Madonna's Confessions II: Madonna performs at TSX Stage in Times Square on June 4, 2026 in New York City.
    Culture Madonna's Confessions II Deserves to Be the Album of the Summer, But the Response Proves We Still Punish Women for Ageing
    Lexi Minetree in Elle, the Legally Blonde prequel
    Culture Legally Blonde's Prequel Elle Captures the Lost Joy of Analogue Adolescence
     
     
    Latest in News
    Kinda Chic Trend
    Shopping Is "Kinda Chic" Kinda Cringe? Everyone's Favourite Fashion Word Just Went Completely Out of Fashion
    Beauty Digest
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: The Foundation Using Exosome Technology, the Treatment That Transformed My Skin Texture—Plus, the Ever-Earlier Advent Calendar Race
     
     
    Kaia Gerber
    Shopping Everything Kaia Gerber Wears Is a Masterclass in Minimalism—These Are the Pieces and Brands She Always Goes Back to
    Copenhagen Fashion Week street style
    Shopping Kitten-Heel Sandals, Lace Dresses and the Season's New Favourite Shade of Blue— These are the Copenhagen Fashion Week Street Style Trends to Note
     
     
    logoCreated with Sketch.
    • Site Archive
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Terms and conditions
    • Advertise with us
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • About us
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire UK is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.