LOS ANGELES - A former writer and producer on the popular US comedy show "Scrubs" was charged Wednesday with multiple counts of sexual assault, five years to the day since the MeToo movement forced Hollywood into a reckoning.
Eric Weinberg, who also produced "Californication," faces 18 counts relating to the alleged sexual assault of five women between 2014 and 2019.
"The defendant relied on his Hollywood credentials to lure young women for photo shoots where he allegedly sexually assaulted them," Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón said.
"Power and influence can corrupt some to hurt others that often leads to a lifetime of trauma for those who are victimized."
The charges come exactly five years after The New York Times published a bombshell investigation into allegations of sexual harassment against a long-untouchable giant of Hollywood, Harvey Weinstein.
The watershed movement saw millions of women share the #MeToo hashtag and spin-off versions in multiple countries to denounce sexual violence and endemic sexism.
Weinstein, who has been convicted in New York, goes on trial in Los Angeles on Monday over alleged assaults in the city.
The "Pulp Fiction" producer has denied all charges.
Gascon's office said Wednesday that "Scrubs" writer/producer Weinberg approached women on two occasions in 2014 and told them he was a photographer.
He is alleged to have sexually assaulted them in his LA home later.
"In 2017, the defendant used the same ruse to bring a young woman back to his house where he allegedly sexually assaulted her," a statement said.
Two other women were allegedly assaulted in separate incidents in 2018 and 2019, the statement said.
"Since his initial arrest in July, dozens of additional potential victims have contacted law enforcement. Each incident will be thoroughly investigated and reviewed for additional charging."
AFP's attempts to reach a legal representative for Weinberg were not immediately successful.
The Hollywood Reporter said Weinberg's divorce attorney Karen Silver had previously dismissed the allegations as "strategically placed" and said Weinberg "if necessary, will address these allegations in the only forum that should matter - a public courtroom."
Weinberg has been released on bail and ordered to appear in court on Oct 25. - AFP