FOR THE MOST PARTSCH: Time to call out Allen, #MeToo, no matter his skills

Published 6:00 am Wednesday, January 24, 2018

So why does Woody Allen get a pass?

That is the question I have been asking myself over and over again as the #MeToo movement has built up significant steam in Hollywood and beyond since last October. Women, both famous and not famous, have bravely come forward to stand up against powerful men who have either sexually harassed or abused them.

Many famous actresses and entertainers have used the hashtag on social media platforms as a rallying cry to either show support or reveal their own stories of sexual violence. The list of women that have spoken out includes Ashley Judd, Uma Thurman, Mira Sorvino, Rose McGowan, Gwyneth Paltrow and Lady Gaga.

TIME magazine’s 2017 Persons of the Year were The Silence Breakers, the voices both famous and not famous that have spoken out.

The fallout from the movement has resulted in many a powerful player in Hollywood to be exposed as a sexual predator, this after years of that disgusting behavior being kept as an open secret. Everyone from independent filmmaker James Toback, Miramax studio head Harvey Weinstein, stand-up comedian and actor Louis C.K., U.S. Senator and former Saturday Night Live cast member Al Franken, Today show host Matt Lauer and many, many more.

Every day there seems to be someone else that is being exposed for being a sexual predator, yet Allen remains the Teflon Don when it comes to this movement.

This past weekend at the Women’s March in Los Angeles, actress Scarlett Johansson publicly went after actor James Franco, who has been accused by five different women for sexual misconduct in the weeks since winning an acting Golden Globe on January 7.

Johansson stated, “My mind baffles. How could a person publicly stand by an organization that helps to provide support for victims of sexual assault while privately preying on people who have no power?”

Johansson further stated “I want my pin back, by the way,” which was a reference to Franco wearing a “Time’s Up” pin at the Golden Globe.

It is commendable for Johansson for standing up for a cause she believes in, but it also makes her a hypocrite.

Johansson starred in three of Allen’s movies — “Match Point,” “Scoop” and “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” — in the mid-2000s, and she publicly defended the famed Oscar-winning actor-writer-director when Dylan Farrow, daughter of Allen’s former girlfriend actress Mia Farrow, penned an open letter in 2014 once again accusing him of sexually abusing her when she was child.

It is a story that has not changed in the 20 years since she first told it as a 12-year-old. It should also be noted that Allen has denied the claims over and over again.

Johansson told The Guardian, “It’s not like this is somebody that’s been prosecuted and found guilty of something, and you can then go, ‘I don’t support this lifestyle or whatever.’ I mean, it’s all guesswork.”

So why is it guesswork when it comes to Allen’s accuser and not the five women who have accused Franco?

Kate Winslet, Blake Lively, Kristen Stewart and others also have publicly supported Allen after working with him.

In an interview promoting last year’s “Wonder Wheel,” Winslet said of working with Allen, “I didn’t know Woody and I don’t know anything about that family. As the actor in the film, you just have to step away and say, I don’t know anything, really, and whether any of it is true or false. Having thought it all through, you put it to one side and just work with the person. Woody Allen is an incredible director.”

Winslet has since sidestepped talking about Allen and the accusations.

Look, there is no denying what impact Allen has had on modern comedy and filmmaking. His early films “Annie Hall,” “Hannah and Her Sisters” have become adored and studied in university film courses, modern films like “Midnight in Paris” are acclaimed and charming and his influence has been prevalent for multiple generations in television and film. There also is no denying Allen has an affinity for writing the type of layered roles that women strive to perform, and unfortunately are in short supply.

But it still doesn’t explain why Allen gets a pass.

The accusations against Allen have been public for two decades, he has had a longstanding working relationship with Weinstein, who Allen supported publicly last year stating that we should be warned of “a witch hunt atmosphere” when allegations first surfaced of his friend and studio boss. 

Let us also not forget that Allen also dated and then married his longtime girlfriend’s adopted daughter. Yes. He went from helping take care of a young girl as her mother’s boyfriend to then dating and marrying her.

Yet, nothing has been done about calling out Allen with the exceptions of a few such as actress Ellen Page, who has since stated her regret for working with Allen, and fellow thespians Susan Sarandon and Jessica Chastain, who have proclaimed they never would work with Allen.

If the #MeTooMovement is all about no longer allowing sexual assault and harassment fester in Hollywood and society at large, then the movement can’t stand by and support someone like Allen — regardless of how funny he and his words have been.

RAYMOND PARTSCH III is managing editor of The Daily Iberian.