Rina Sawayama, 33, reveals she was groomed by a teacher at 17: ‘It completely broke my whole world apart’
Rina Sawayama revealed that at the age of 17, she was groomed by a man she thought was dating – and that he was her teacher.
The singer and John Wick star, 33, spoke about it during an interview on BBC Three’s In conversation.
Rina said her epiphany came during the sex and relationship therapy she was doing.
‘This is the first time I’m talking about this, but doing sex therapy – sex and relationship therapy – made me realize that really something that I thought was a relationship that I had, when I was 17, was actually being taken care of, Rina said.
“The reason why that realization happened in my 30s was because I was finally his age,” the actress said.
The latest: Rina Sawayama revealed that at the age of 17, she was groomed by a man she thought was in a relationship; seen on March 20, 2023 at the LA premiere of John Wick: Chapter 4
Trauma: The singer and actress spoke about it during an interview on BBC Three’s In Conversation
Rina said coming to this realization “completely tore my whole world apart.”
“I distinctly remember how uncomfortable I felt there, but I didn’t put two and two together,” she said.
“And it was through this very intense form of therapy, which I’m so lucky to have access to, that I was able to come to terms with that, and it completely shattered my whole world.”
The John Wick: Chapter 4 star also revealed it was a school teacher, telling the outlet, “It came to light that, that happened at my school, it was actually a school teacher.”
Adding that she was “so very ashamed that I developed so much shame around my sexuality and completely lost my sense of self, I became detached from my skin, like inside, I don’t know how to describe it.” But I was just so scared of things. And I started having anxiety attacks,” she told the outlet.
The star went on to say, “Seventeen to me is a child, you’re in school, you don’t have autonomy most of the time, and especially when you’re in a school environment, if a teacher comes to you, it’s an abuse of power. I didn’t realize that until I was his age,” she said during her interview.
Born in Japan but raised in Britain, Rina was part of a group called Lazy Lion as a teenager.
Trauma: The John Wick: Chapter 4 star also revealed it was a teacher, telling the outlet, “It came to light that, that happened at my school, it was actually a teacher; seen on May 31, 2023 in London
Star power: Rina made her acting debut in 2019 in Turn Up Charlie, and her film debut in Joh Wick: Chapter 4, released in 2023; seen on March 20, 2023 in Hollywood
She started her solo career in February 2013; she has two albums to her name: Sawayama in 2020.
Rina made her acting debut in 2019’s Turn Up Charlie, and her film debut in Joh Wick: Chapter 4, which was released in 2023.