‘iZombie’ Star Robert Knepper Accused Of Sexual Assault By Costume Designer

Veteran costume designer Susan Bertram is claiming that “iZombie” actor Robert Knepper sexually assaulted her on the set of Allison Anders’ 1992 film “Gas Food Lodging.”

Bertram told The Hollywood Reporter that the alleged assault took place in 1991 at a truck stop near Deming, N.M. She was 31 at the time and a newcomer to the industry.

According to Bertram, she went to Knepper’s trailer to drop off some clothes for the actor after a day of shooting. Bertram entered the trailer with her hands full and when she leaned over to reach a rack on a far wall, Bertram said that Knepper “jumped up,” reached under her dress and grabbed her crotch “as hard as he could.”

After she dropped everything, Bertram said the actor shoved her against the wall, and said, “I’m going to — your brains out.” Bertram tried to break free, shouting, “I’m working, I’m working!” When she managed to push Knepper off, she said she “flew out of that trailer” as fast as she could. “I just kind of fell out the door, and landed in the dirt on my knees,” recalled the costume designer, who recently worked on this year’s horror film “Annabelle: Creation.”

Inside a bathroom, Bertram said she reached under her dress and saw that she was bleeding. She also found out that the crotch of her tights had been ripped. Bertram said that Knepper had gouged at her vulva during the assault and a piece of her flesh and some pubic hair had been torn out.

Bertram said she cried in the bathroom for a while. After she got herself together, Bertram went back to the wardrobe trailer where she told her then-assistant, Dominique DuBois, what had happened. DuBois confirmed the incident to The Hollywood Reporter, saying, “I remember Susan came in and she was visibly shaking. She told me [Robert Knepper] had forced himself on her. She was very upset, very shaken. I do remember that.”

DuBois told the news outlet that still feels bad that she just let horrible incident pass, but she and Bertram acknowledged that both of them didn’t feel empowered to say much at the time. “We didn’t have any protections back then,” Bertram said. “I was young, it was one of my first jobs in the industry, I was a long way from home. Even if I had said something, what were they going to do? Fire their lead actor? It would have been a joke.”

But Bertram said that a lot has changed in the last few weeks, which saw a wave sexual assault and harassment allegations against powerful men in Hollywood and the media world, including Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey.

Knepper, who is best known for his role as Theodore “T-Bag” Bagwell on the Fox hit series “Prison Break,” was promoted to series regular for the upcoming Season 4 of CW’s “iZombie.” The 58-year-old actor will also be seen next in films “Frat Pack,” “Bleed,” and “1st Born.” As of this moment, it’s unclear how Bertram’s allegation against Knepper will affect the actor’s involvement in these projects.