Woody Allen has backtracked over comments he made about the sexual abuse accusations levelled against movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.
Over the weekend, the Oscar-winning director shared his thoughts on the allegations against Weinstein, claiming he felt “sad for everybody involved” telling the BBC: “Tragic for the poor women that were involved, sad for Harvey that [his] life is so messed up.
Woody continued that he hoped the ongoing story would not lead to a “witch hunt” atmosphere in which “every guy in an office who winks at a woman is suddenly having to call a lawyer to defend himself”, claiming: “That’s not right either.”
His remarks created a backlash on social media, leading him to issue a statement in response to the controversy which came in the wake of his remarks.
Speaking to Variety, he said: “When I said I felt sad for Harvey Weinstein I thought it was clear the meaning was because he is a sad, sick man.
In the early 1990s, Woody faced his own allegations of sexual abuse, following his split from ex-wife Mia Farrow, when he was accused of molesting their adopted daughter, Dylan.
More than 20 years later, in 2014, he was forced to speak out again, when Dylan repeated the allegations in a blog post published on the New York Times.
Woody responded to this in another New York Times piece, in which he wrote: “Of course, I did not molest Dylan. I loved her and hope one day she will grasp how she has been cheated out of having a loving father and exploited by a mother more interested in her own festering anger than her daughter’s well-being.
Weinstein has faced a string of sexual assault and sexual harassment accusations, but has “unequivocally denied” any allegations of non-consensual relationships.