Sarah Silverman on Louis CK: 'I'm angry but also sad, because he’s my friend'

'Can you love someone who did bad things?'

"I've of course been asked to comment, and in full honesty I really, I really really really, don’t want to."

It was with a heavy heart on Thursday that Sarah Silverman addressed "the elephant masturbating in the room": the allegations of sexual misconduct against her dear friend, Louis CK.

"I wish I could sit this one out. But ... if it’s mentionable, it’s manageable," she said in a special message on her new Hulu show I Love You, America.

"One of my best friends of over 25 years, Louis CK, masturbated in front of women. He wielded his power with women in fucked up ways, sometimes to the point where they left comedy entirely.

"I could couch this with heartwarming stories of our friendship and what a great dad he is, but that’s totally irrelevant, isn’t it? Yes, it is. It’s a real mind fuck because I love Louis, but Louis did these things. Both of those statements are true, so I just keep asking myself, can you love someone who did bad things? Can you still love them?"

Silverman and CK have worked together on countless occasions, Silverman having guest-starred twice in his FX sitcom, Louie.

CK was accused by five women of sexual misconduct in a bombshell New York Times story, the allegations always revolving around him wanting to expose himself to and/or masturbate in front of women.

"I’m still processing all this shit," Silverman concluded.

"The only people that matter right now are the victims. They are victims. And they’re victims because of something he did.

"So I hope it’s ok if I am at once very angry for the women he wronged and the culture that enabled it, but also sad, because he’s my friend."