Scarlett Johansson Defends Woody Allen: 'I Believe Him, and I Would Work with Him Anytime'
Scarlett Johansson is standing by frequent collaborator Woody Allen, despite the growing list of actors and actresses who have expressed regret in working with the director.
Johansson expressed her support for the director (who worked with her on Match Point, Vicky Cristina Barcelona and Scoop) in a new cover story for The Hollywood Reporter, saying she would work with him “anytime.”
In the aftermath of the #MeToo movement, many of the director’s collaborators – including Freida Pinto, Greta Gerwig, Colin Firth and Mira Sorvino – publicly vowed to never work with Allen, 83, again.
“How do I feel about Woody Allen? I love Woody,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. “I believe him, and I would work with him anytime.”
Johansson, 34, continued, “I see Woody whenever I can, and I have had a lot of conversations with him about it. I have been very direct with him, and he’s very direct with me. He maintains his innocence, and I believe him.”
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In late 2017, Allen faced resurfaced allegations of child molestation by his daughter Dylan Farrow, who publicly claimed in a New York Times open letter in 2014 that Allen molested her as a child. Allen has long denied the allegations, which were first reported during his explosive 1992 split from Mia Farrow. The director was not charged, though a Connecticut prosecutor said there was probable cause for a criminal case.
Johansson stood by her decision to support him, though she said she understands why so many have stated their support in believing women’s allegations.
“It’s hard because it’s a time where people are very fired up, and understandably,” she said. “Things needed to be stirred up, and so people have a lot of passion and a lot of strong feelings and are angry, and rightfully so. It’s an intense time.”
The Black Widow actress isn’t the only one to stand by Allen. Actors like Anjelica Huston, Alan Alda and Javier Bardem previously threw their support behind Allen, saying they, too, would have no qualms against teaming up again.
RELATED: Mia Farrow Says She ‘Reached a Place Many Years Ago’ Where She Doesn’t ‘Care’ About Woody Allen
“I’d work with him again if he wanted me to,” Alda told The Hollywood Reporter in January. “I don’t know all the facts, I don’t know if he’s guilty or innocent. But you can be uncertain – that’s what I go on.”
“I just don’t have enough information to convince me I shouldn’t work with him,” the actor added. “And he’s an enormously talented guy.”
