Celebrity Men Join Videos About Sexual Assault and Idea of 'Boys Will Be Boys'

Mariska Hargitay directs new PSAs that challenge notion "boys will be boys."

ByABC News
October 24, 2016, 2:10 PM

— -- In the wake of recent discussions from the political campaigns about the conduct and language around sexual assault, a group of celebrity men are challenging the notion that "boys will be boys" in a series of public service announcements.

"Law & Order: SVU" star Mariska Hargitay directed the 15- and 30-second spots that feature an all-male cast, including Andre Braugher, Anthony Edwards, Blair Underwood, Chris Meloni, Daniel Dae Kim, Dave Navarro, Ice-T, Nick Lachey, Raul Esparza and Tate Donovan.

In the black-and-white PSAs, the stars recite some of the excuses often heard in the locker room, board room, school yard and living room. They also repeat the words "boys will be boys."

The ads end with the words "enough" and "together we can change the culture." They invite viewers to share the hashtag "#ChangetheCulture" on social media and take a pledge to support sexual assault survivors, talk openly about the issues and model respect.

"Deep cultural change does not happen overnight," Hargitay said in a press release. "It’s going to take time. It’s also going to take smart, engaged, committed, creative, determined people applying their best thinking to these issues. It’s going to take enough people in enough communities deciding that they’ve had ENOUGH."

The PSAs were created by Hargitay's organization, Joyful Heart Foundation, which is dedicated to ending sexual and domestic violence against women and girls.

In 2014, Hargitay, who plays Olivia Benson on the long-running "Law & Order: SVU" franchise, directed a similar series of PSAs after a number of high-profile domestic violence cases implicated NFL players. In those spots, titled "Speechless," stars struggled to find the words to talk about domestic violence.