A lot of people have had utterly terrible takes on the many sexual harassment allegations against Harvey Weinstein, with some people suggesting that Mike Pence was right to be afraid of women and others noting that Harvey Weinstein can be a very nice guy when he’s not (allegedly) being an abusive asshole, but now Woody Allen has come forward with a response that is either chillingly direct or completely devoid of self-awareness. Speaking with the BBC, Allen has said that this whole thing is “very sad”—both for the women involved and for Weinstein himself, whose “life is so messed up”—but also he’s worried that these allegations will lead to “a witch hunt atmosphere.”
For some reason, Allen is concerned that this will lead to a situation in which “every guy in an office who winks at a woman” will have to call a lawyer, which may or may not have something to do with the fact that he’s been facing allegations of his own for years. Daughter Dylan Farrow has accused Allen of sexually abusing her when she was a kid, and though Allen himself has denied doing anything, his estranged son Ronan Farrow—who also happens to be the journalist behind the brutal New Yorker piece in which multiple women accuse Harvey Weinstein of assault—has repeatedly come to his sister’s defense.
Going back to the BBC interview, Allen also hinted at a history of choosing not to believe abuse victims by noting that people in Hollywood “hear a million fanciful rumors all the time,” and while some are true, “many” are simply “stories about this actress, or that actor.” He also says that nobody ever came to him with information about Weinstein “with any real seriousness,” but he implies that he wouldn’t have cared if they did. “You are not interested,” he says. “You are interested in making your movie.”