Spike Lee Walks Back Comments Defending “Friend” Woody Allen Against Cancel Culture

Anita Bennett
·2 min read

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Spike Lee says he was “wrong” to defend Woody Allen against “cancel” culture.

In a Friday interview on New York City radio station 710 WOR’s “In the Morning” program, Lee discussed Allen’s fall from grace with hosts Len Berman and Michael Riedel.

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“I’d just like to say Woody Allen is a great, great filmmaker and this cancel thing is not just Woody. 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 stated.

The director appeared on the program to promote his new Netflix film Da 5 Bloods. When the conversation turned to Allen, Lee explained, “Woody is a friend of mine, a fellow Knicks fan, and I know he’s going through it right now.”

It didn’t take long for Lee to start “going through it” himself. On Saturday afternoon, he issued an apology on social media saying he was “wrong” to defend Allen.

“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 tweeted at 5:14 p.m. ET.

Allen’s adopted daughter Dylan Farrow accused him of molesting her in 1992 when she was a child. He has repeatedly denied the allegations and was not charged with a crime after two police investigations. The accusations led to the director becoming a pariah.

Listen to Spike Lee’s interview below.

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