Mercedes Blanche Calls Out Hollywood's 'Dark Side' After Hayden Panettiere's Death

A Hollywood actor and comedian has lifted the lid on the darker side of the entertainment industry following the death of Hayden Panettiere.

Mercedes Blanche, best known for her dad jokes and witty one-liners on social media as well as her role in superhero dark comedy series The Boys, says women in Hollywood are too often expected to stay silent.

The actor claims she has been harassed by famous men and pressured to perform ‘favors’ to land work.

She also says she was left feeling unable to speak out after hearing crude comments from male crew members while filming a topless scene for The Boys.

“We recently lost Hayden Panettiere, and when someone is struggling in Hollywood, there are always signs,” said Mercedes, who has amassed more than two million followers on Instagram.

“Hayden’s death shows why mental health and issues for women in this industry need to be talked about.

“It has happened so many times before and people just move on and don’t listen.”

Mercedes, who moved from her native Hungary to Canada at 16 before settling in Los Angeles, has had her own experiences of working in a male-dominated industry, particularly in comedy and acting.

She said: “I’ve been exposed to men in this field who feel they are in power and have asked me to do ‘favours’ in order to book jobs or get more visibility on stage.

“I’ve called a few people out on my social media – I'm very vocal about women being heard, she says.

Adding, "Women are constantly being put down and not acknowledged in this industry at all. Whether it’s pay or stage time, I’m just seeing a lack of female representation."

“I feel like if I speak up, I might start a chain reaction where other people will come out and talk too, because it’s just constant harassment and being desired – we’re just seen as objects. Hollywood is hard and it's not for everyone."

“I’ve had very famous people shoot their shot and harass me, and I’m always surprised that they aren’t afraid I’m going to post about them. But they’re on a different level, they don’t care."

The actress says, "When I was younger it was so hard to manage because I felt like I was doing something wrong or I was overreacting. I thought maybe I was the problem, but now that I'm older, I realise I was never the problem.”

Famous faces sliding into her DMs has also changed how Mercedes views some of the actors she once admired.

She adds, “Someone recently asked me what my favourite movie was and I had a hard time naming one because all the people from my favourite movies have been in my DMs trying to hit me up, or telling me to do things that I didn’t want to do."

Mercedes says she also felt pressure to stay quiet while filming her role as X-Ray in hit Amazon Prime series 'The Boys.'

She claims, “Almost everyone on set was lovely but my role was a topless scene and there were uncomfortable moments where I could hear crude comments coming from crew members."

“That was the very first lesson for me – that I must smile and just shut up. I was overthinking it all – am I the drama? Am I the problem? Is this really appropriate? Now that I look back, I would just tell myself to talk about it or be firmer."

“I was so afraid to speak up so I kept smiling – there were 30 male cameramen and crew and it was my first gig. I just didn’t want to blow it.”

Mercedes says those experiences have now inspired her to create a different environment for other women in the industry.

The actor is producing her own horror comedy movie, NeuroDieVirgin, after launching her own production company.

Concluding, “It gives me a good ground to create a safe space for other females and lets me provide a set where none of what happened to me, and is still happening, will affect them.”