Spike Lee Apologizes for Remarks Defending Woody Allen

Filmmaker Spike Lee has apologized for remarks he made in defense of Woody Allen. On Twitter on Saturday, Lee posted that his "words were wrong" when it came to his defense of Allen against cancel culture in Hollywood. Lee had spoken about Allen in a recent appearance on a New York City radio program to promote his new Netflix film Da 5 Bloods, describing Allen as a friend in his remarks.

I Deeply Apologize. My Words Were WRONG. I Do Not And Will Not Tolerate Sexual Harassment, Assault Or Violence. Such Treatment Causes Real Damage That Can't Be Minimized.-Truly, Spike Lee.

— Spike Lee (@SpikeLeeJoint) June 13, 2020

"I Deeply Apologize. My Words Were WRONG. I Do Not And Will Not Tolerate Sexual Harassment, Assault Or Violence. Such Treatment Causes Real Damage That Can't Be Minimized.-Truly, Spike Lee," the filmmaker wrote in the Tweet.

On Friday, Lee appeared on 710 WOR's "In the Morning" program with hosts Len Berman and Michael Riedel when he made his controversial comments in support of Allen.

"I'd just like to say Woody Allen is a great, great filmmaker and this cancel thing is not just Woody," Lee said (via Variety). "And I think when we look back on it we are going to see that -- short of killing somebody -- I don't know that you can just erase somebody like they never existed."

Lee also added that "Woody is a friend of mine, a fellow Knick fan, so I know he's going through it right now."

Allen has been controversial figure in Hollywood since allegations resurfaced that he molested his adoptive daughter Dylan Farrow in 1992 when she was seven years old. Allen has denied the allegations and has not been charged with a crime, but there has been backlash. Allen's memoir was rejected by Grand Central Publishing after widespread criticism and an employee walkout at the company's Hatchett Book Group imprint -- which had published Allen's son Ronan Farrow's Catch and Kill -- over the memoir. The book was ultimately published by Arcade Publishing on April 7. Additionally, Amazon cancelled a movie deal with Allen and dropped his film A Rainy Day in New York from distribution.

Lee's latest film Da 5 Bloods, a film about Black soldiers returning to Vietnam in search of the remains of their fallen squad leader as well as the promise of buried treasure, was released on Netflix on Friday. The film, one of the most anticipated of 2020, has been an instant hit with viewers, earning a 92 percent Fresh Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes. The film currently (at the time of this article) is sitting at a 62 percent audience score.

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