Judd Apatow, the comedian and director who has been an outspoken critic of Bill Cosby in the wake of dozens of accusations of drugging and sexual assault, should have felt vindicated at the revelation of unsealed court documents from 2005, in which Cosby admitted to drugging a woman for sexual purposes.
Instead, Apatow said such a confession, even though it was in the context of an investigation and not from Cosby to the public, should not have been necessary.
Apatow told Esquire, “I don’t think there is anything new here. It is only new to people who didn’t believe an enormous amount of women who stated clearly that he drugged them. We shouldn’t need Bill Cosby to admit it to believe 40 people who were victimized by him. I am sure there are many victims who have not come forward. Maybe now more people in show business and all around our country will stand up and tell people he attacked that we support you and believe you.”
Apatow called on “Cosby Show” co-star Phylicia Rashad and on Cosby’s wife, Camille Cosby, who have denied the allegations against him, to join singer, model and actress Jill Scott and withdraw their support.
Scott had previously called the accusations “insane,” but after the release of the prior confession, said, “Sadly, his own testimony offers proof of terrible deeds, which is all I have ever required to believe the accusations.”
Prior to the scandal, in a New York Times interview, Apatow identified Bill Cosby as one of his heroes–along with Steve Martin and the Marx Brothers–who inspired him to pursue a career in comedy.
Apatow grew up in a “Jewish but nonreligious” family in Flushing, Queens. His mother, Tamara, managed record labels founded by her record producer father Bob Shad. His father, Maury, was a real estate developer.
Apatow told Danielle Berrin of the Hollywood Jew blog: “I’m not a religious person, but I couldn’t be more Jewish.”
When asked if he uses the same, mainly Jewish ensemble because of the connection created by the shared heritage, he replied, “Maybe. It’s just a sensibility that’s almost an unspoken, unconscious thing. You can’t quite put your finger on why.”
Berrin sees the director of “40 Year Old Virigin” and “Knocked Up,” and producer of “Girls,” as focusing on outsiders, eccentrics and misfits — a central theme in Jewish comedy.
It’s possible, Berrin posits, that the male stoner culture could be a rejection of “overwhelming Jewish ambition in the quest for success, wealth and power, which in itself is a response to never having had any.”
Following the revelation of Cosby’s prior testimony under oath, that he administered Quaaludes so he could compel them to have sex with him, Apatow tweeted: “Cosby admits to offering ‘educational trusts’ to women who accused him. That is how young they were. College kids.”
Whoopi Goldberg and Raven-Symone of “The View” have said they still need irrefutable proof before they accept the allegations against Cosby.
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