Alec Baldwin is no stranger to scandal, and now the actor is planning on interviewing fellow disgraced filmmaker Woody Allen, who has been accused of child sexual abuse by his adopted daughter Dylan Farrow.
Baldwin made the announcement Sunday on social media that on Tuesday morning he’s going on Instagram Live with Allen. “Be there,” he said in the video, where Baldwin is seen holding up Allen’s book “Zero Gravity,” his first new collection of short stories in 15 years, published June 7. “I love you, Woody,” Baldwin also said in the video.
In the post’s caption, Baldwin seemingly attempted to get ahead of the backlash by writing: “Let me preface this by stating that I have ZERO INTEREST in anyone’s judgment and sanctimonious posts here.”
“I am OBVIOUSLY someone who has my own set of beliefs and COULD NOT CARE LESS about anyone else’s speculation,” he continued. “If you believe that a trial should be conducted by way of an HBO documentary, that’s your issue.”
In 2017, Farrow’s allegations against her estranged adoptive father received renewed attention in the wake of the #MeToo movement, which went viral following her brother Ronan Farrow’s reporting on Harvey Weinstein. The author has long maintained that Allen molested her when she was a child, discussing the alleged assault in articles and on camera, including Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering’s HBO docuseries “Allen v. Farrow.”
Allen has denied the allegations and has not been criminally charged.
Baldwin has worked with Allen on films including 1990’s “Alice,” 2012’s “To Rome With Love” and 2013’s “Blue Jasmine.”
Baldwin has recently had his fair share of negative media spotlight following the October shooting on the set of his Western movie “Rust,” which involved the actor firing a prop gun that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
In April, extensive video footage was released in the ongoing investigation and shed light on the internal issues that led to the tragic incident, including violations of known industry safety protocols. According to a report released that same month, the young armorer on the set, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was not given the chance to perform her job and stated that “Rust” did “not provide staff responsible for ensuring firearms safety with sufficient time to inspect ammunition received to ensure that no live rounds were present.”
Data files released by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s office in April included a video of investigators debriefing Baldwin within hours of the fatal shooting, talking with him inside a compact office. The investigation files also include rehearsal clips that show Baldwin in costume as he practices a quick-draw maneuver with a gun.
At a ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe on Oct. 21, 2021, Baldwin was pointing a gun at Hutchins when it went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. They had been inside a small church during setup for filming a scene.
In a video taken by police later that day, Baldwin makes a few frantic calls as he awaits a meeting with law enforcement officials. “You have no idea how unbelievable this is and how strange this is,” he says over the phone.
“I don’t want to be a public person,” Baldwin says over the phone in that same video footage. “I’m the one holding a gun in my hand that everyone was supposed to have taken care of.”
Read more at usatoday.com
