Megyn Kelly is seen tearfully breaking down as she admits she wishes she would’ve done more to help fellow sexual harassment accusers who were fired after complaining to Fox.
The host was brought to tears in a video shared on her YouTube channel Thursday showing the emotional reactions of Juliet Huddy, Rudi Bakhtiar, and Julie Zann who are portrayed in the new movie Bombshell.
As the women watch the film where Kelly (Charlize Theron) argues she hasn’t stood up to then-Fox CEO Roger Ailes in order to save her career, Bakhtiar labels the depiction ‘bulls**t’ and another woman is heard calling it ‘horse s**t’.
‘When I saw that scene I thought it was shameful, because its unfactual and it is victim-shaming, and this is a movie about sexual harassment,’ Zann says in a chat with Kelly after the screening.
‘This is sending the wrong message. You were just a real support system and I know that it wasn’t just me. It was for a lot of other people.’
Julie Zann said Bombshell is unfactual and is victim-shaming with its scene showing Megyn Kelly preserve her career at Fox by refusing to stand up for her colleagues claiming sexual harassment. But Kelly admits she wishes she would have done more
Bakhtiar labels the depiction ‘bulls**t’ and another woman is heard calling it ‘horse s**t’
Kelly was one of the spate of women who confirmed Roger Ailes sexually harassed them. Ailes was fired from the network in July 2016 for multiple sexual harassment cases with 23 known victims
Charlize Theron (left) portrays Kelly in the movie. Kelly admits it’s strange to watch her as they look alike
Kelly’s husband Douglas Brunt says she is ‘crazy’ for blaming herself and believes if she spoke up it would’ve done nothing
However a crying Kelly confesses: ‘I’ve looked back on my own life, every moment from that moment forward and I do wish I had done more.
‘Even though I was powerless, even though it would’ve been a suicidal move for me career-wise, what if I had just said, “screw it?”‘
‘Maybe that wouldn’t have happened to you [Zann].’
But her husband Douglas Brunt disagreed: ‘That’s crazy’.
He added it would have ‘done nothing’.
Kelly also said in the 30-minute video shared Thursday that meteorologist Janice Dean doesn’t get enough credit for being a colleague who many of the victims confided in and who she subsequently gave advice.
They’re just a few of the spate of women who accused Roger Ailes of sexual harassment and misconduct.
Zann worked as an associate producer for Fox News Live from 2005 to 2006. After leaving the network she moved on to CNN as a producer. Today Zann runs her own media consultancy group called Zann Media.
‘It’s horrifying to know you’re just trying to do a job and that’s actually what someone intended for you,’ she said tearfully in Kelly’s video.
A full emotional sit down talk between Kelly, her husband Brunt, Huddy, Bakhtiar, Zann aired on Kelly’s YouTube channel Thursday
Kelly said about Bombshell: ‘The notion that Roger liked the “Donald Trump woman question” because it created controversy in a TV moment was not true. Roger did not like the question at all and was very angry at me for asking it. And at one point eventually asking me, “no more female empowerment stuff”‘
Kelly also said in the 30-minute video shared Thursday that meteorologist Janice Dean (pictured) doesn’t get enough credit for being a colleague who many of the victims confided in and who she subsequently gave advice
Another scene Kelly had a problem with was the idea that she cleared her debate questions for Donald Trump with Ailes and the News Corp company owners.
In fact, she claims she was yelled at encouraging ‘female empowerment’.
‘They suggest that I had run my debate questions for Trump by the Murdochs. That’s a fantasy. I never ran it by Ailes or the Murdochs, or anyone other than my debate team,’ Kelly said.
‘The notion that Roger liked the “Donald Trump woman question” because it created controversy in a TV moment was not true. Roger did not like the question at all and was very angry at me for asking it. And at one point eventually asking me, “no more female empowerment stuff”.’
Kelly adds that the film suggesting opposition to her being at the GOP convention was also fantasy.
‘There certainly were no protests of me at the GOP convention. There were other people’s protests,’ Kelly continued. ‘That was all BS.’
Zann and Kelly claim that Luhn (right)was a victim at one point but then became a perpetrator for Ailes (left) when she got herself out of her own sexual harassment by offering up a replacement in the form of Zann
Russell Crowe as Roger Ailes and Annabelle Wallis as Laurie Luhn in The Loudest Voice, 2001
‘It’s horrifying to know you’re just trying to do a job and that’s actually what someone intended for you,’ she said tearfully in Kelly’s video
Julie Zann worked as an associate producer for Fox News Live. Today Zann runs her own media consultancy group called Zann Media. Pictured above with husband Michael Cornacchia
The movie depicted how Ailes (portrayed by John Lithgow, right) had female staffers stand up and twirl for him claiming he had to check them out because they’d be on camera. Megyn Kelly and Roger Ailes depicted in the movie above
On the contrary, Kelly says the movie gets it right by implying her daughter Yardley Evans Brunt was inspiration for her finally speaking out against sexual harassment.
Kelly praises a scene showing Theron – who she says she found difficult to watch because they look so similar – looks down at her sleeping child and makes the career-changing decision.
Similarly Zann believes that a scene where Margo Robbie appears to portray her in Ailes office, is identical to what happened when she was supervised by Laurie Luhn.
The former employee and Kelly claim that Luhn was a victim at one point but then became a perpetrator for Ailes when she got herself out of her own sexual harassment by offering up a replacement in the form of Zann.
‘He brought me in and he said, “Laurie [Zann’s supervisor] tells me that you’re a rising star”. And he commented on how I looked. He asked me what I wouldn’t do for Fox. After he commented on my outfit, he said tell me more about yourself and I said, ‘I’m a shoe person.’ And he said, ‘I hear women who like shoes also like lingerie”,’ Zann explained.
‘He had positioned himself in his chair with his legs opened and he wanted me to ask him to give him oral sex. And I was not going to go there. Then, my relationship with Laurie turned very quickly on a dime and [I] was fired a few months later.’
Luhn’s role has a bigger focus in 2001’s The Loudest Voice where Russell Crowe stars as Roger Ailes and Annabelle Wallis is Luhn.
Spot on: All of the women cried while watching the elevator scene. Left to right: Theron, Nicole Kidman, and Robbie
Juliet Huddy accused one of Fox News’ top hosts Bill O’Reilly (left with Ailes, right) of sexually harassment saying he pursued a sexual relationship with her in 2011 – a time when he held significant power over the trajectory of her career
Huddy claimed that when she let O’Reilly down, he tried to retaliate by having her fired
Today Huddy is married to rock musician John Fattoruso. Today she still works in TV and co-hosts a WACB show in New York. But she admitted she’s bitter O’Reilly got ‘zillions’ in his severance package but she lost her house
Zann is one of the three out of four women who said they were demeaned when Ailes asked them to twirl for him.
A key moment in the film reveals that Ailes had aspiring anchors and female employees spin and twirl for him so he could check out their bodies.
‘I do think we have to talk about the spin,’ Kelly says in her new YouTube video.
When asked if she was forced to twirl for Ailes, she confessed, ‘I was asked to do the spin and God help me, I did it.’
‘I know people think it’s like, ‘Oh yeah, you spin around.” But I remember feeling like, I put myself through school; I was offered partnership at Jones/Day, one of the best law firms in the world, I argued at federal courts of appeal all over the nation, I came here, I’m covering the United States Supreme Court, I graduated with honors in all of my programs and now he wants me to twirl? And I did it.’
After pausing for a heavy beat her eyes began to fill with tears.
‘If you don’t get how demeaning that is, I can’t help you,’ Kelly, who worked at Fox from 2004 to 2017, said.
‘I was asked to twirl, and I did it,’ Zann, the former associate producer for Fox News Live, said.
‘He never did the twirl thing to me,’ Huddy, who worked as a host for Fox News’ The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, said. “He would just say, ‘Turn around and let me see your ass. You’re too skinny, gain some weight.” That kind of stuff.’
Rudi Bakhtiar complained to Fox News about alleged harassment by Brian Wilson in 2007 and was soon after fired from the network
Bakhtiar said she believes the punishment fit the crime for the fired men who walked away with millions of dollars in severance packages as ‘money is not everything’. ‘He was so embarrassed and his life was ruined,’ Bakhtiar added
‘He asked me to get up and turn around, and I didn’t do it. I didn’t get up and turn around, but he did ask me,’ former Fox News reporter Bakhtiar said.
Rudi Bakhtiar complained to Fox News about alleged harassment by Brian Wilson in 2007, before he was promoted to the network’s Washington bureau chief. That same year she was fired. Wilson denied the harassment in July 2016.
Despite complaining, she was unlawfully treated and ultimately terminated, according her lawyers. Fox News said she couldn’t prove a connection between her complaint and the termination of her contract. After confidential mediation she reached a $670,000 settlement from Fox News on the remainder of her contract.
In the film Bombshell she’s mentioned as one of the first examples of women the Fox network retaliated against after reporting harassment. Today she is a producer for Reuters in Washington D.C.
Juliet Huddy accused one of Fox News’ top hosts Bill O’Reilly of sexually harassment saying he pursued a sexual relationship with her in 2011 – a time when he held significant power over the trajectory of her career. She claimed that when she let him down, he tried to retaliate by having her fired.
She accused him of calling her and sounding like he was masturbating, kissing her, and asking her to return a key to his hotel room where he appeared at the door in boxer shorts.
She reached a six-figure settlement with 21st Century Fox, the parent company of Fox News in exchange for her silence and agreement not to sue. The New York Times reported the settlement was estimated to have been worth $1.6million.
Today she still works in TV and co-hosts a WACB show in New York.
Ailes was fired from the network in July 2016 for multiple sexual harassment cases with 23 known victims.
When questioned by Kelly about whether she the fired men got what they deserved, some of the women said they did not because Ailes walked away with $40million severance.
Huddy admitted that O’Reilly leaving with ‘zillions’ of dollars made her feel bitter because she struggled to get new work and lost her house.
Bakhtiar however said she believes the punishment fit the crime as ‘money is not everything’.
‘He was so embarrassed and his life was ruined,’ Bakhtiar added.