Blue Jasmine star Cate Blanchett opened up about how she feels about the sexual abuse allegations against her former director Woody Allen in light of the Time's Up and #MeToo movements.
Speaking to Christiane Amanpour on her CNN show Amanpour, Blanchett stated that Dylan Farrow's allegation that her father Allen molested her as a child was a "painful and complicated" situation. (Allen has repeatedly denied the incident Farrow is referring to ever took place.)
"At the time that I worked with Woody Allen, I knew nothing of the allegations," Blanchett told the host. "At the time, I said it’s a very painful and complicated situation for the family, which I hope they have the ability to resolve."
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Blanchett added that should there be a reason for the case to be reopened in a court of law, she is "absolutely, wholeheartedly in support of that." Blanchett did caution that social media can not replace "judge and jury."
"I feel that these things need to go into court, so if these abuses have happened, the person is prosecuted and so someone who is not in the shiny industry that I am can use that legal precedent to protect themselves," she explained to Amanpour. "Always, in my industry or any other industry, they’re preyed upon because they’re vulnerable."
The Time's Up legal defense fund, which Blanchett is a supporter of, will help financially underprivileged people battle harassment in court.
It's possible that Blanchett did not know about the allegations, despite the allegations being public knowledge as early as 1992. Blue Jasmine hit theaters in 2013, and when the film began receiving Oscar buzz, Farrow began to speak out about what she saw as Hollywood hypocrisy.
In a 2014 open letter in the New York Times, Farrow called out Blanchett, as well as other stars who worked with the Annie Hall director. Farrow stated in the letter:
"What if it had been your child, Cate Blanchett? Louis CK? Alec Baldwin? What if it had been you, Emma Stone? Or you, Scarlett Johansson? You knew me when I was a little girl, Diane Keaton. Have you forgotten me?"
Alec Baldwin, Blanchett's Blue Jasmine co-star, previously defended Allen from the allegations, as did Annie Hall actress Diane Keaton. Other actors, however, such as Rebecca Hall, Mira Sorvino, and Greta Gerwig, have publicly stated that they will not work with Allen again upon learning of the allegations. Sorvino apologized directly to Farrow for working with the director in an open letter on The Huffington Post.
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Refinery29 has reached out to reps for Allen and Blanchett for additional comment.
If you have experienced sexual violence and are in need of crisis support, please call the RAINN Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).