Denise Richards reveals why she stayed silent being sexually harassed

Denise Richards is done staying silent.

After three decades in Hollywood, the Bold and the Beautiful actress has witnessed a great many changed to the industry, but is especially “amazed” by the immense impact of the #MeToo movement.

“There definitely needed to be a change — and not just in the entertainment industry,” Richards recently told PEOPLE. Speaking from personal experience, Richards revealed that early in her career she wanted to file a sexual harassment lawsuit, but she was pressured to keep silent.

“I was told I would be blacklisted,” she recalled. “I felt so vulnerable. This was the career I wanted to do. To be told that you’re never going to work in an industry that you are passionate about, it’s a hard thing.”

Thankfully, raised awareness and organizations like Time’s Up means that less people will face the pressures that plagued Richards during her rise to fame.

“I am glad that women are able to have more of a voice and be more protected,” she shared. “If that happened at this age, I would handle it differently, but I was so young and an unknown and [just] starting out.”

Activist Tarana Burke created #MeToo in the mid-2000s to promote awareness around sexual assault and cultivate a community of victims on MySpace, but it wasn’t until Oct. 2017 that the hashtag received worldwide attention, following the cascade of sexual misconduct and abuse allegations leveled against Harvey Weinstein. The Time’s Up Movement was subsequently founded as a non-profit organization by celebrities including Shonda Rhimes, Reese Witherspoon, and Eva Longoria in January 2018 to raise funds to support victims of sexual harassment and advocate for gender parity.

Richards — who stars alongside daughters Sami, 20, Lola, 19, and Eloise, 13, on their new reality show Denise Richards & Her Wild Things, shared that she is especially grateful for the changes given her kids’ entry into the entertainment world.

“I look at my daughters doing our show and being such strong women. If I had that, I think I would’ve been able to handle it a little differently,” she added. “I’m so proud of them. I’m so proud that they say what’s on their mind. They sometimes don’t have a filter, and a lot of the time, that is such a good thing.” 

She continued, “I was such a people pleaser when I started my career. And I love that my girls, this early in their career, that they’re able to [speak up]. Sometimes I’m like, ‘You might want to tone it down,’ but for the most part I’m glad that they’re able to say [what’s on their mind.] I wish I was able to back then.”

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Richards got her start in the early ’90s, rising to prominence with roles in 1997’s Starship Troopers and 1998’s Wild Things, before breaking out as Bond girl Christmas Jones in The World is Not Enough.

Later in her career, she would become the subject of her very own reality show — Denise Richards: It’s Complicated — before spending two seasons on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in 2019 and 2020. Now, the new Bravo series will see her return to reality TV alongside her husband, Aaron Phypers, and three daughters (Richards shares Lola and Sami with ex Charlie Sheen).