Javier Bardem Stands by Woody Allen: 'I Am Very Shocked by This Sudden Treatment'

Javier Bardem is defending Woody Allen amid the ongoing controversy surrounding the famed director.

In an interview with the French publication Paris Match, the actor said he is “absolutely not” ashamed to have worked with Allen on the 2008 film Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

Bardem, 49, starred alongside wife Penelope Cruz in the film, which won the actress an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.

The actor said he had “doubts” over the criticism of Allen for longstanding sexual abuse allegations.

Allen, 82, has long denied the allegations made by daughter Dylan — who is one of the star’s three children with ex Mia Farrow. Dylan publicly claimed in 2014 that Allen molested her as a child. When the allegations first surfaced during his explosive split from Mia in 1992, the director was not charged.

“If there was evidence that Woody Allen was guilty, then yes, I would have stopped working with him, but I have doubts,” Bardem continued.

“I am very shocked by this sudden treatment. Judgments in the states of New York and Connecticut found him innocent,” he added. “The legal situation today is the same as in 2007.”

A New York State Child Welfare investigation at the time found “no credible evidence” Dylan had been “abused or maltreated.”

The Connecticut investigation took a controversial turn when state attorney Frank S. Maco announced in 1993 that despite finding “probable cause” to prosecute Allen, he was dropping the case because Dylan was too “fragile” to deal with a trial. But in 2013, after Dylan opened up to Vanity Fair about the alleged molestation, Maco told PEOPLE that Dylan was “traumatized to the extent that I did not have a confident witness to testify in any court setting, whether that’s a closed courtroom or an open courtroom.”

The controversy surrounding Allen made headlines again, last year, after the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment accusations rocked Hollywood.

Speaking of the #MeToo movement, Bardem said he is concerned that a divide is growing between men and women.

“I’m fortunate to have been raised by a very strong mother who taught me to respect women. Today, we have the impression there are men on one side and women on the other, which sends a very bad message to the younger generation,” he said. “The goal is not to be against each other but to be with others.”