Actress Keira Knightley released a violent commercial Thursday highlighting the problem of domestic violence. In the two-minute film, Knightley is beaten by an abusive boyfriend after she arrives home from a day of filming.
The commercial, made for the charity Women’s Aid, was launched online. It will be shown on television and in movie theaters, the group said. The film, called “CUT,” was directed by Joe Wright, who directed Knightley in “Atonement.” At the end, the words “Isn’t it time someone called cut” appear on screen. According to the Web site for Women’s Aid, two women are killed by a current or former partner in the United Kingdom in an average week. In a statement on the charity’s Web site, Knightley said, “I wanted to take part in this advert for Women’s Aid because while domestic violence exists in every section of society, we rarely hear about it.” “We may not think we know someone who has experienced domestic violence, but this does not mean that it is not happening,” she said.
