The case of Nuno Lopes raises debate about whether or not an artist reported for harassment should be banned before being sentenced in court
Nuno Lopes will reappear on Portuguese television starting in November, with the premiere of ‘A Fazenda’, a soap opera on the TVI channel set in Angola, Africa. In Brazil, the Lisbon actor became famous for his role as José Manuel, known as Murruga, in ‘Esperança’, a period series broadcast on Globo between 2022 and the following year.
Handsome and charismatic, he won many fans in the country, however he did not return to do other work. Last year the heartthrob was the subject of a serious complaint. The American screenwriter and director Anna Martemucci accused him of sexual abuse. The crime apparently occurred in April 2006, in New York, after a wine-based meeting.
Nuno claims to be innocent. “I would never drug someone and I would never take advantage of someone who is incapacitated, either through excess alcohol or as a result of other substances,” he defended himself.
It revealed the requests made by the complainant to settle the matter out of court. “I received with surprise and shock a letter from the United States from the lawyers (…), asking me to propose a sum of money for the closure of this case, and an apology. I rejected them both.”
Even with his image damaged, the artist preferred to face North American justice to prove his version. “I have an absolutely clear conscience, but I am aware of the very serious consequences that this case represents. And how my decision to refuse a confidential settlement and publicly go to court impacts my reputation, both personally and professionally.”
The Portuguese actor Joaquim de Almeida, of the Brazilian film ‘O Xangô de Baker Street’ and Hollywood productions, intervened in defense of his colleague. “There has been intolerable abuse by some people, but there are also many people who take advantage of it. Let’s take the case of Nuno Lopes,” he told ‘Correio da Manhã’. “Clearly you want money. The complaint was filed three days before the statute of limitations.”
In an article on the ‘Visão’ portal, gender equality activist Paula Cosme Pinto criticized TVI for casting Nuno Lopes in the soap opera ‘A Fazenda’. «Beyond the inconveniences and dangers it entails, someone has also thought of the implicit message of exalting the suspicion of sexual violence that will take place in prime time, bringing in the guise of a television star someone who – we cannot yet know – could have actually raped a woman?” he asked.
“With so many talented actors in Portugal, do we need a signature like this in the middle of a court trial, with everything open? If they wanted to work with this actor so badly, couldn’t they have waited until the case was solved and hired him later?”
In reaction, the editor of the weekly Sol, Vítor Rainho, published a text. “… has the activist ever thought that the actor has met hundreds of actresses, screenwriters, hairdressers and the like over the course of 17 years and that none of them have complained about anything? Doesn’t the activist believe that, from 2006 to 2023, the fact that there were no complaints against the brilliant actor justified a bit of common sense on his part, before wanting to see the actor in the ‘fire’?”, he protested. “It’s amazing how someone’s life can be destroyed by complaining about something that happened 17 years ago and there is no proof.”
This controversy involving Nuno Lopes is reminiscent of the case of Globo’s José Mayer. In 2017, the veteran heartthrob was accused of harassment by a costume designer at the network. Despite the complaint, the victim did not want to go to court.
Faced with public pressure, the actor did not have his contract renewed. Since then he has lived in isolation and has never returned to work. At the time, several television artists expressed support for the costume designer, as many others spoke in Mayer’s defense.
In Brazil, women victims of any type of violence can call 190 (Military Police) and 180 (Women’s Service Center) to receive help and guidance.
Source: Terra
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