Elijah Wood claims he was protected by his mum as a child star (Picture: Getty Images for Turner Networks)

Elijah Wood claims Hollywood is in the grip of a child sexual abuse scandal similar to that of Jimmy Savile in Britain.

The Lord Of The Rings star, 35, said paedophiles were protected by powerful figures in the film industry.

In an interview with the Sunday Times, he said: ‘You all grew up with Savile – Jesus, it must have been devastating.’

Corey Feldman alleges he was surrounded by abusers when he was a teenager (Picture: Getty Images for Ovation)

‘Clearly something major was going on in Hollywood. It was all organised. There are a lot of vipers in this industry, people who only have their own interests in mind. There is darkness in the underbelly – if you can imagine it, it’s probably happened.’




He added: ‘What upsets me about these situations is that the victims can’t speak as loudly as the people in power. That’s the tragedy of attempting to reveal what is happening to innocent people: they can be squashed, but their lives have been irreparably damaged.’

Wood said he was protected from the abuse as a child star growing up by his mother Debra but that other child actors had been regularly ‘preyed upon’ at parties by industry figures.

Former co-stars Corey Feldman and Corey Haim (Picture: Getty Images)

He said: ‘She was far more concerned with raising me to be a good human than facilitating my career.’

Former child actor Corey Feldman previously alleged that he was ‘surrounded’ by abusers by the time he was 14-years-old.

The Stand By Me star told ABC’s Nightline show: ‘The number one problem in Hollywood was and is — and always will be — paedophilia. When I was 14 and 15, things were happening to me.

‘These older men were leching around like vultures. It was basically me lying there pretending I was asleep and them going about their business.’

Jimmy Saville was accused of child abuse after he died (Picture: Getty Images)

Feldman claimed former co-star Corey Haim’s death at the age 38 was caused by the abuse he suffered at the hands of a ‘Hollywood mogul’ that he refused to name.

Both actors suffered from mental health issues and battled alcoholism and drug addiction after finding fame as child actors.

Since Savile’s death in 2011, hundreds of his victims have come forward accusing him of child abuse.

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