Time’s Up pins dotted the lapels of the men of Hollywood at the Golden Globe Awards on 7th January. Yet when it came to actually talking about the initiative dedicated to bringing justice to sexual harassment survivors in every industry, they were largely silent. Surprisingly, the pins had mostly disappeared at the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday night. Despite their absence, however, a few emboldened men did speak about the subject. Timothée Chalamet talked about sexual assault on campus and achieving 50/50 gender parity by 2020. Kumail Nanjiani said, “I think it’s time for us to listen to the discussions that women are having and look at ourselves in the mirror and interrogate our own behaviours because a lot of times men are coming off in ways that they don’t understand are harmful.” Sam Rockwell used his acceptance speech to say that he stands “shoulder to shoulder with [Frances McDormand] and all the incredible women in this room trying to make things better.”
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It was backstage, though, where things apparently got interesting. According to Variety, William H. Macy, who picked up the SAG Award for Best Actor in a Comedy, revealed “that he participated in a meeting of Hollywood men related to the Time’s Up movement.” Macy continued, saying that, “It’s hard to be a man these days. I think a lot of us feel like we’re under attack and that we need to apologise, and perhaps we do. We had a meeting. A bunch of guys got together under the auspices of Time’s Up. That’s good for men. Men don’t talk enough. And we talked.”
Macy didn’t elaborate on who attended this meeting, but it’s extremely interesting to know that it took place and remained private until now. It’s great that men are taking an active role in the Time’s Up initiative, and not just letting women do all the work. His words on the subject are interesting as well, particularly when he noted that “a lot of us feel like we’re under attack and that we need to apologise.” Perhaps he’s alluding to the witch hunt mentality that some people, like Catherine Deneuve, have mistakenly said the #MeToo movement has given rise to (she has since apologised). Hopefully, he’s referring to the way in which the movement has inspired everyone, everywhere to take a step back and examine their own behaviour and actions to make sure they’re respectful of other people.
A lot of famous men’s names have been in the headlines as of late. While it’s obvious who the outright predators are, in some cases, it’s been harder to distinguish what qualifies as sexual misconduct, harassment, or assault. That topic has fuelled what feels like thousands of think pieces, often leading to infighting among feminists. Men shouldn’t be left out of this conversation, especially since they’re the actors and instigators in these situations. Time is more than up when it comes to tolerating sexual harassment and abuse in all industries, not just Hollywood. Knowing that men are taking an active role in the discussion is heartening to learn.
Macy also thinks that progress is being made towards gender parity in Hollywood — although he’s under the impression we’re a little farther along than we really are. “It’s a good time to be a girl. I’m proud of this business, because such things as safety in the workplace, that’s done. We’re not going back. It’s changed. It changed in an instant and it’s not going back. When it comes to equality in pay, it’s inevitable. It’s going to happen and it’s going to happen quickly. My hat’s off to our business.”
Refinery29 has reached out to a representative for William H. Macy to learn more about the Time’s Up meeting. His wife, Felicity Huffman, is extremely involved in the movement and has hosted a meeting at the couple's house.
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