'Wakanda Forever' Star Tenoch Huerta Exits Netflix Movie After Denying Sexual Assault Accusation: 'Have No Choice'
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'My focus now is simple: continue the process of restoring my reputation,' Tenoch Huerta said, as he continued to deny allegations made against him by
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Tenoch Huerta says he will no longer star in an upcoming Netflix movie after denying a sexual assault accusation made against him
On Wednesday, the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever actor, 42, said in a statement shared with multiple outlets that he will no longer appear in the film Fiesta en la Madriguera, more than one week after musician and activist María Elena Ríos accused him of being a "sexual predator" in a series of Spanish-language Twitter posts.
“Given the impact of the recent false statements by María Elena Ríos and the damage they have caused, I have no choice but to withdraw from participating in the film Fiesta en la Madriguera," the actor said in a statement obtained by multiple outlets.
“It is with great sadness that I do this, but I cannot allow her actions to harm not only me, but also the work of dozens of talented and hard-working people involved in the project,” he added. “My focus now is simple: continue the process of restoring my reputation.”
Netflix previously announced on May 29 that the movie, directed by Manolo Caro, was expected to begin filming on June 15, three days after Huerta denied the claims made against him in an Instagram Story.
The streamer and production company described Fiesta en la Madriguera as a story about a boy named Tochtli who seeks to obtain a Namibian pygmy hippo for his private zoo. "His father, Yolcaut, is willing to satisfy his every whim, even if that whim is an endangered exotic animal," reads a synopsis for the movie from Netflix. "Because Yolcaut will always manage."
The woman who accused Huerta of sexual assault, Ríos, first made the allegation in a Spanish-language Twitter post on June 10, after she also accused an activist group she and Huerta both once participated in called Poder Prieto of "protecting" the actor.
"It is very difficult to talk about the emotional abuse and abuse of power of a sexual predator who is loved in the world for playing a character in a movie," she then claimed on Twitter, tagging Huerta in the post.
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"And no, I don't want to be famous. And no, I don't want money because I know how to work," Ríos added in a follow-up post, as she explained why she had not previously reported her accusations against Huerta.
Huerta's statement released on his Instagram Story last Monday called Ríos's accusations "irresponsible and false." The activist and musician continued to share additional claims of abuse against Huerta on Twitter as recently as Thursday.
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"About a year ago, I dated Elena for several months. It was entirely consensual at all times, as countless others can attest," Huerta wrote in the statement, describing the relationship as "loving, warm and mutually supportive."
"After it ended, however, Elena began to misrepresent our interactions both privately and in front of groups of mutual friends," the actor claimed, noting that he has retained legal representation "to protect my reputation and refute these irresponsible and false accusations that can cause great prejudice and damage."
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
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