'GoT' Star Daniel Portman Says Fans Sexually Assaulted Him For This Horrendous Reason
Consider us officially angry on behalf of Daniel Portman, who portrays Podrick on Game of Thrones. In a recent interview with Esquire magazine, Portman revealed he’s been sexually assaulted by female fans in the past. It may feel easy to shrug off Portman’s comments, especially since they’re sandwiched into an otherwise light, fun interview and they’re about a man, but this news is truly gut-wrenching.
On GoT, the character of Podrick is known as a dependable, kind-hearted young man who, it’s often pointed out, is also pretty well-endowed. This particular physical trait of Pod’s has also become fodder for memes and jokes within the GoT fandom. But if Portman’s comments to Esquire are anything to go by, it’s apparent that fans are having trouble distinguishing between what’s real and what’s not.
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“I’ve been grabbed by so many [fans],” Portman commented, continuing, “Like the amount of like older, older women who are very [makes grabbing gesture with his hands]…”
Portman didn’t really go into specifics about incidents that have stuck with him, but the interview illustrates, with the help of his comments, that this was not solicited contact between himself and his fans. Portman reflects on this, telling Esquire, “What can you do? You know? Obviously, tell them not to do it. It hasn’t happened for a while. In this day and age, you’d think that people would be able to separate reality from fiction.”
He continues, saying, “I don’t want to say [being groped] comes with the territory, but, you know, people are crazy about it. It’s certainly not cool.”
Portman ends the discussion on the topic with the following: “I was 20 when that happened, so it was kind of like a kid in a candy shop. When you tell a 20-year-old actor, who’s sort of stumbled onto this big TV show, that all of a sudden you’re meant to be Casanova, people all over the world wonder whether or not it’s true. I would be lying if I said that that hadn’t been fun.”
I don’t know about you, but I am extremely not okay with this news. My heart goes out to Portman for having to deal with this, especially being so young and newly-minted as a star thank to GoT. It’s already a huge task dealing with the highs and lows of being a celebrity, but let me be clear when I say: no celebrity and furthermore, no human being, should ever be subjected to sexual assault. Touching another person anywhere, including their genitals, without their consent is appalling behavior. I get that fans can sometimes feel like they are entitled to a celebrity’s time and attention because they themselves spend so much time lifting up their celebrity of choice and singing their praises on social media and beyond. But that doesn’t entitle someone to grope another person.
My heart goes out to Portman. Hopefully, his story can serve as a strong reminder this behavior is not okay and if you’re a fan of his (or any other celeb’s), you should make sure you remember that he’s a person just like you and deserves to have his personal space respected.
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