Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick responds to rape accusation

Gossip Girl actor Ed Westwick has responded to accusations of raping a female actress in 2014.

Kristina Cohen published a Facebook post on Monday in which she details an alleged sexual attack by Westwick at his home.

The 27-year-old actress wrote that she was introduced to Westwick by a friend "who brought me up to Ed’s house where I met Ed for the first time".

"I wanted to leave when Ed suggested ‘we should all f***’," she added.

"I said I was tired and wanted to leave," she said.

"Ed suggested I nap in the guest bedroom," she said.

Cohen claims she was "woken up abruptly by Ed on top of me", and he then began to rape her.

"I told him to stop, but he was strong," she said.

"I fought him off as hard as I could but he grabbed my face in his hands, shaking me, telling me he wanted to f*** me," she added.

"I was paralysed, terrified. I couldn’t speak, I could no longer move. He held me down and raped me. It was a nightmare, and the days following weren’t any better."

On Wednesday, the actor famous for his role as womaniser Chuck Bass in the TV show Gossip Girl shared a statement on his Instagram page denying all accusations.

"I do not know this woman," he wrote.

"I have never forced myself in any manner, on any woman," he added.

"I certainly never committed rape."

Cohen, who had minor roles in TV shows like Californication and Greek, said she buried her "pain and guilt" afterwards.

The accusation against Westwick comes as Hollywood deals with a stream of allegations of sexual harassment, assault and rape which began with producer Harvey Weinstein and have since been directed at big industry names such as Kevin Spacey.

While Weinstein has denied all allegations against him, Spacey issued an apology for an alleged incident he did not recall.

Cohen said she was "sickened to see men like Ed respected in such a public way, interviewed by prestigious platforms such as the Oxford Union Society, where he was honoured as one of their ‘people who shape our world’".

"I hope my coming forward will help others to know that they are not alone, that they are not to blame, and it is not their fault.

"Just as the other women and men coming forward have helped me to realise the same."

(c) Sky News 2017: Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick responds to rape accusation