LONDON: Woody Allen on Sunday cautioned against creating a "witch hunt atmosphere" after scores of women — actresses, models, and assistants — came forward to accuse Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment, assault, and rape, since an initial investigation published by the New York Times.
"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," added Allen — who, himself, has faced allegations in the 1990s of abusing his adopted daughter Dylan Farrow.
Allen, nevertheless, cushioned his statement with sugary comments, saying he feels "sad" and hopes the Weinstein case — a scandal that has shaken Hollywood to its very roots — would lead to "some amelioration".
"Tragic for the poor women that were involved, sad for Harvey that (his) life is so messed up. There's no winners in that, it's just very, very sad and tragic for those poor women that had to go through that," Allen told BBC.
"But sure, you hope that something like this could be transformed into a benefit for people rather than just a sad or tragic situation," Allen told the British broadcaster.
Allen's alleged abuse came to spotlight when Farrow published an open letter in the New York Times back in 2014. Then, last year, her brother Ronan published a column in the Hollywood Reporter criticising the media for failing to ask hard questions about his sister's case.
Ronan Farrow went on to be one of the journalists who investigated Weinstein, penning a piece in The New Yorker, in which three women alleged he raped them.
While Allen and Weinstein have worked together in the past, he told BBC he was not aware of the serious allegations against the Hollywood powerbroker.
It is noteworthy that Mira Sorvino — the star of their Oscar-winning 1995 collaboration Mighty Aphrodite — is one of the actresses who has come forward with claims against Weinstein.
"No one ever came to me or told me horror stories with any real seriousness," Allen said. "And they wouldn't because you are not interested in it. You are interested in making your movie."
"But you do hear a million fanciful rumours all the time. And some turn out to be true and some — many — are just stories about this actress or that actor."
In Monica Hesse's detailed piece published in The Washington Post Saturday, lawyer Gloria Allred believes the Weinstein case "is going to be bigger. It's a tsunami".
"The dam has broken for Mr. Weinstein and for others," Allred — who has represented more than 30 victims in the Bill Cosby scandal — said.
The lawyer is also representing several of Weinstein's accusers but said she has "also been getting calls about other men in Hollywood. Studio executives, A-list actors. Big names. Names you would know."
More than 40 women — including major Hollywood names such as Kate Beckinsale, Cara Delevingne, Eva Green, Ashley Judd, Angelina Jolie, and Rose Mcgowan — have raised accusations against Weinstein.
The disgraced movie mogul, however, has denied all allegations of non-consensual sexual activity and has not been seen in public since leaving his daughter's home in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
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