Judi Dench Admits to Feeling Torn by Hollywood Sexual Harassment Scandal

The situation is "getting a bit out of hand," Dame Judi added at the London premiere of The Murder on the Orient Express

Photo: Tom Betterton + Jenny Gage

Dame Judi Dench has admitted to feeling torn in two directions by the sexual misconduct allegations rocking Hollywood.

Speaking to Sky News at the London premiere of The Murder on the Orient Express on Thursday, the Oscar-winner said, “It’s very hard when a lot of people concerned are great friends of yours.”

“I feel loyal to them and at the same time I feel appalled by what has happened to a lot of young actresses who had no way of getting out.”

Dench — who plays Princess Dragomiroff in the revamped murder-mystery alongside Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, and Hamilton‘s Leslie Odom Jr. — added that the only way powerful Hollywood figures could be stopped from harassing people in the future, was simply for them to “behave better.”

Dench has long credited Harvey Weinstein for her start in Hollywood. She starred in the 1997 movie Mrs. Brown, which wasproduced by Weinstein’s former studio, Miramax. Once as a practical joke, the actress had a fake tattoo of the producer’s name applied to her bum. Dench told Charlie Rose she revealed the faux ink at the Four Seasons over lunch with Weinstein. “Ive never seen a man more embarrassed,” recalled the Oscar winner.

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She also won an Academy Award for her performance in Shakespeare in Love — another Miramax film. Their most recent collaborations include 2013’s Philomena and 2016’s period drama Tulip Fever.

Weinstein has been accused of sexual misconduct by over 50 women since The New York Times and The New Yorker documented decades of alleged sexual misconduct and sexual assault involving a number of women in detailed articles earlier this month.

A spokesperson for Weinstein previously told PEOPLE in a statement that “any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein. Mr. Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances.”