Quentin Tarantino apologizes for playing 'devil's advocate' on Roman Polanski raping 13-year-old girl

Jennifer Kline
Updated ·2 min read
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Quentin Tarantino is publicly apologizing for highly controversial comments he made in a resurfaced Howard Stern interview from 2003.

"I incorrectly played devil's advocate in the debate for the sake of being provocative," Tarantino said in a statement. "I didn't take [his victim's] feelings into consideration and for that I am truly sorry."

Earlier this week, audio circulated of Tarantino asserting that Roman Polanski's then 13-year-old victim, Samantha Geimer, "wanted it": “It's statutory rape, he had sex with a minor, that's not rape,” Tarantino said over Stern's objections.

After Stern's co-host, Robin Quivers, noted that the girl had been drugged with Quaaludes and alcohol, Tarantino continued, "No, that was not the case at all. She wanted to have it and dated the guy."

“Wait a minute,” Stern interrupted “You have sex with a 13-year-old girl and you’re a grown man, you know that that’s wrong because she hasn’t…"

The "Pulp Fiction" director replied, "Look, she was down with this" and called the child a "party girl."

Tarantino's full apology is below:

I want to publicly apologize to Samantha Geimer for my cavalier remarks on “The Howard Stern Show” speculating about her and the crime that was committed against her. Fifteen years later, I realize how wrong I was. Ms. Geimer WAS raped by Roman Polanski. When Howard brought up Polanski, I incorrectly played devil’s advocate in the debate for the sake of being provocative. I didn’t take Ms. Geimer’s feelings into consideration and for that I am truly sorry.

So, Ms. Geimer, I was ignorant, and insensitive, and above all, incorrect.

I am sorry Samantha.

Quentin Tarantino

Samantha Geimer, for her part, told the New York Daily News that Tarantino was "wrong," but "nobody has to be pissed off on my behalf. I'm okay."

"It's not a big deal to me what people think. It doesn't make a difference in my life. I know what happened. I do not need other people weighing in on what it's like getting raped at 13," she said.