"Blue Jasmine" actress Cate Blanchett broke her silence about the sexual abuse controversy surrounding the film's director, Woody Allen.
Blanchett is currently up for the Oscar Award for Best Actress because of Allen's film. Many websites are speculating Allen's child molestation allegations will hurt her chances to win the award. The Wrap reports Hollywood Elsewhere columnist Jeffrey Wells asked the actress for her take on Allen's situation, to which she responded:
"I mean, it's obviously been a long and painful situation for the family, and I hope they find some sort of resolution and peace."
The sexual abuse allegations against the famous filmmaker stem from an open letter his estranged adopted daughter Dylan Farrow wrote for the New York Times to publish. The letter detailed when the alleged sexual abuse began and why Allen never faced any charges.
"Woody Allen took me by the hand and led me into a dim, closet-like attic on the second floor of our house," Farrow wrote. "He told me to lay on my stomach and play with my brother's electric train set. Then he sexually assaulted me. He talked to me while he did it, whispering that I was a good girl, that this was our secret, promising that we'd go to Paris and I'd be a star in his movies."
According to Farrow's letter, her mother Mia Farrow, Allen's former flame, agreed to not pursue a criminal investigation when the filmmaker was stripped of his visitation rights.
"That he got away with what he did to me haunted me as I grew up," Farrow wrote. "I was stricken with guilt that I had allowed him to be near other little girls. I was terrified of being touched by men. I developed an eating disorder. I began cutting myself. That torment was made worse by Hollywood. All but a precious few (my heroes) turned a blind eye."
However, Allen claims Farrow's letter is completely untrue and is a result of her mother filing her mind with false stories. Allen's attorney Elkan Abramowitz released the following statement to the New York Daily News:
"It is tragic that after 20 years, a story engineered by a vengeful lover resurfaces after it was fully vetted and rejected by independent authorities. The one to blame for Dylan's distress is neither Dylan nor Woody."
