Update (Feb. 23, 9:38 a.m.): The H.F.P.A. has released a statement addressing Fraser, claiming his remarks to GQ include allegations they were “previously unaware of” and are currently investigating:

“The HFPA stands firmly against sexual harassment and the type of behavior described in this article. Over the years we’ve continued a positive working relationship with Brendan, which includes announcing Golden Globe nominees, attending the ceremony and participating in press conferences. This report includes alleged information that the HFPA was previously unaware of and at this time we are investigating further details surrounding the incident.”

The original post continues below:

Throughout the 1990s and the early 2000s, Brendan Fraser was ubiquitous. He had franchise hits like The Mummy, as well as critical successes like The Quiet American and Crash. But as the aughts wore on, Fraser’s output began to dwindle, leaving viewers to wonder what became of him. In an in-depth interview with GQ published Thursday, Fraser said that one of the reasons he pulled away from Hollywood was because of an alleged incident in 2003 in which, he alleged, former Hollywood Foreign Press Association president, Philip Berk, groped him.

“I became depressed,” he said, explaining his retreat from the entertainment industry. “I was blaming myself and I was miserable.”

The alleged incident took place at an H.F.P.A. luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Fraser said that when he was leaving the crowded room, Berk came to shake his hand goodbye. This, Fraser said, is when Berk assaulted him. “His left hand reaches around, grabs my ass cheek, and one of his fingers touches me in the taint,” Fraser claims. “And he starts moving it around.”

“I felt ill,” he continued. “I felt like a little kid. I felt like there was a ball in my throat. I thought I was going to cry.” Fraser said he rushed out of the room and told Afton, his wife at the time, what had happened. In a statement to GQ, Berk, who is still an H.F.P.A. member, denied the allegations. “Mr. Fraser’s version is a total fabrication,” he said.

Fraser said he considered taking the allegations public, but ultimately changed his mind: “I didn’t want to contend with how that made me feel, or it becoming part of my narrative.” Instead, his representatives asked the H.F.P.A. for a written apology. Berk told GQ that he did write to the actor, but “my apology admitted no wrongdoing, the usual ‘If I’ve done anything that upset Mr. Fraser, it was not intended and I apologize.’”