Director Woody Allen is facing fierce backlash after he insinuated in an interview that it’s still acceptable to wink at women in the workplace.
In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein sex abuse scandal, Allen has been fielding many questions on the topic, and his replies thus far have been met with criticism and rebuke. (Allen’s sketchy past of sex abuse accusations from his own adopted daughter and his affair with his 35-years-younger stepdaughter don’t help matters, though he’s strongly denied any allegations.)
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Last week, Allen was forced to publicly apologize after saying he felt “sad” for Weinstein, who has at least 34 women accusing him of sexual harassment or sexual assault. Allen later said that he meant that he felt pity for him because he’s a “sad, sick man.”
The Annie Hall and Blue Jasmine director stoked further anger when he then said he hoped the Weinstein accusations didn’t lead to a “witch-hunt atmosphere.”
“You also don’t want it to lead to a witch-hunt atmosphere, a Salem atmosphere, where every guy in an office who winks at a woman is suddenly having to call a lawyer to defend himself. That’s not right either,” he said.
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The remarks led to much fury on social media, where many people reminded Allen that winking at a woman in the workplace is no longer acceptable.
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According to some reports, Weinstein allegedly helped reinvigorate Allen’s career after he was accused of sexually abusing his adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow.
“Shunned by Hollywood means nothing to Miramax,” Weinstein said in 1994, referring to Allen and his pre-Weinstein Company production house. “We’re talking about a comic genius.”
Weinstein, through a representative, has denied any and all accusations of non-consensual sex.
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