LOS ANGELES — CBS says it's investigating a sexual harassment allegation against Jeremy Piven, the latest Hollywood figure caught up in a widening circle after dozens of women alleged they were sexually harassed or assaulted by fallen movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.
Actress and reality star Ariane Bellamar claimed in posts on her Twitter account Monday that the Emmy-winning Entourage star groped her on two occasions.
Bellamar alleged that one encounter took place in Piven's trailer on the Entourage set, when he allegedly grabbed her breasts and bottom, and the other occurred at the Playboy Mansion.
Piven strongly denied the allegations in a statement sent to USA TODAY.
"I unequivocally deny the appalling allegations being peddled about me," said Piven in a statement provided by his rep, Jennifer Allen. "It did not happen. It takes a great deal of courage for victims to come forward with their histories, and my hope is that the allegations about me that didn’t happen, do not detract from stories that should be heard."
CBS, which airs Piven's new series, Wisdom of the Crowd, said in a statement that "we are aware of the media reports and are looking into the matter."
In a Monday interview with The Associated Press, Piven said he had never sexually harassed anyone when asked about the allegations against Weinstein.
Entourage ran on HBO from 2004 to 2011. The Entourage movie was released in 2015. Bellamar is not listed on IMDb for either project.
Bellamar, a former Playboy Playmate, has credits that include Suicide Squad and The Hangover Part III and the reality series Beverly Hills Nannies.
The list of Hollywood and media figures accused of sexual misconduct in recent weeks now includes, besides Weinstein, director James Toback, Oscar-winner Kevin Spacey, Oscar-winner Ben Affleck, Chris Savino, creator of The Loud House, Roy Price, former head of Amazon studios, Fox News' Bill O'Reilly and the late Roger Ailes, TV political journalist Mark Halperin, and Lockart Steele, editorial director of Vox Media.
