In a lengthy, emotional video on Instagram Melissa Benoist, who played Supergirl, revealed on November 27 that she’s a domestic violence survivor, having endured months of abuse from a younger romantic partner.
“I am a survivor of domestic violence or IPV (intimate partner violence), which is something I never in my life expected I would say, let alone be broadcasting into the ether,” she confessed in the video, without naming the abuser.
As per People, Melissa went on to describe her ex-partner as a “magnanimous person, who didn’t really give you a choice not to be drawn to him” and who was “charming, funny, manipulative, [and] devious.”
Five months into their relationship, he started getting emotionally and physically violent, where he threw a smoothie at her face. She also spoke of the violence she endured, which included getting beaten up and dragged by the hair, after all of which she said the partner often apologised.
Melissa — who is currently married to Supergirl co-star, Chris Wood — also posted on Instagram after the video went live, reminding her followers that there is “strength in numbers.”
