Jeremy Piven denies sexually harassing actress on set of Entourage

TV star Ariane Bellamar has accused the actor of 'forcefully fondling' her on two occasions

(Getty Images)

Jeremy Piven has issued a statement denying accusations he groped a woman several years ago.

Reality TV star Ariane Bellamar tweeted the allegations on Monday (30 October) claiming the actor “cornered” her on two separate occasions - once on the set of HBO series Entourage and again at the Playboy Mansion - where she says he “forcefully fondled” her body.

Bellamar also claims that the Emmy award-winning actor sent her "abusive" texts.

​Piven, who played Ari Gold on the HBO series, strongly denied the allegations in a statement to Deadline.

“I unequivocally deny the appalling allegations being peddled about me. It did not happen.

“It takes a great deal of courage for victims to come forward with their histories, and my hope is that the allegations about me that didn’t happen, do not detract from stories that should be heard.”

A spokesperson for CBS - the network airing Piven's current TV project, Wisdom of the Crowd - said: “We are aware of the media reports and are looking into the matter.”

HBO aired Entourage from 2004 to 2011. The cable service acknowledged Bellamar's accusations, saying: “Today, via the press reports, is the first we are hearing about Ariane Bellamar’s allegations concerning Jeremy Piven.

"Everyone at HBO and our productions is aware that zero tolerance for sexual harassment is our policy. Anyone experiencing an unsafe working environment has several avenues for making complaints that we take very seriously.”

Piven is best known to UK audiences as the lead star of ITV series Mr Selfridge.

The accusations follow news that Netflix has halted production on the final season of House of Cards following the assault allegation against Kevin Spacey who is accused of sexually harassing a 14-year-old boy in 1986.