Because separating the art from the artist is a weak cop out that allows predators to roam free.
There hasn’t been a time in my life that the entertainment industry wasn’t in the midst of some sort of scandal. But even with entire social movements and convictions, the problems continue with no end in sight. With the Epstein files recent release, I’m hopeful that people’s eyes will finally start to open to the reality of the world we live in, the world women have always lived in.
Even with Harvey Weinstein, Dan Schneider, Bill Cosby, and Danny Masterson, there has been little to no movement elsewhere in the industry (and of those four… we barely saw any consequences, just more than the average). There are other filmmakers, actors, and people in the industry who have been called out, reported, accused, and convicted who just get to carry on with their careers still intact. Not to mention the people in the industry who have gone out of their way to support these people. There is a reason people like Harvey Weinstein and Dan Schneider were able to do what they did for so long, and that was thanks to the people around them who were complacent in their acts of atrocity. Those people disgust me, and you’ll find them on the list below as well. So without further ado, my shit list (non-exhaustive & forever being updated):
Woody Allen – Don’t even fucking start with me, I won’t even touch the Dylan v Woody case here. Woody Allen and Soon-Yi “started a relationship” in 1991 when she was 21 and he was 56. Yuck. Put yourself in those shoes for a second. He was with her adoptive mother Mia Farrow from 1980-1992, while Soon-Yi was 10-22. Mia Farrow found nude pictures of Soon-Yi that Woody Allen took, in 1992, which is what ended his relationship with Mia and brought the “affair” with her daughter to light. While there are claims that he was never a “father figure” to her…….. He knew her to some degree as a 10 year old while he was a 45 year old man!!! He groomed her. And the Epstein files are out. Soon-Yi’s interactions with Epstein further prove this. These statements are not meant to minimize or villainize Soon-Yi or her experiences–grooming is a form of emotional abuse, anybody who has endured emotional abuse can tell you of the brainwashing effects. Anyway. Y’all can miss me with the defending of this man bullshit. Quit watching his movie. Quit acting in his movies.
Roman Polanski – CHILD RAPIST. STILL MAKING MOVIES. The fuck is wrong with you disgusting humans supporting him. He ADMITTED to raping a 13 year old. Literally fled the country to avoid more time. And there are at least five other women (four minors under 16) who have accused him, one who filed a civil suit two years ago and settled. And people just continue to work with him and support him. Here is a whole list of people who supported Polanski in his drugging and raping of a 13 year old girl, if you care to read (might not like to see some of those names… Wes Anderson, Martin Scorsese, David Lynch).
Quentin Tarantino – Fuck you and your “statutory rape isn’t rape”. Then why is rape in the name you dumb fuck. And if that’s not how you feel, why did it take you over a decade to denounce your own words? Probably because it is how your misogynistic ass feels, but it wasn’t until years later when it actually affected you that an apology felt necessary. Not because you actually felt bad about the effects of both the rape and your words on the victim of Polanski’s assault, but because you felt bad about the effects on you’re own life. Because you are a selfish bag of dicks. Not to mention the fact that you willingly admitted to knowing what Harvey Weinstein was doing. You are the reason I go ahead and include ALL men, because you may not be a rapist, but you sure as shit don’t have a problem with them. Never seen one of your fuck ass movies, never will. Moving on.
Brett Ratner – This bitch coming back with… The Melania Doc. Fuck off. In the Epstein files hugging a child sex trafficking rapist. Career comes back when Trump is in office, with his wife’s documentary… yeah, that all checks out.
James Toback – $1.68 billion in damages to 40 women. Abuse taking place over 35 years. The complacency of the people around this man. Disgusting.
Mark Schwahn – Another “open secret”, like Harvey Weinstein, that this man was an abuser. And nobody really stood up to him. The people who could have done something, protected these EIGHTEEN WOMEN did nothing.
And to add, these actors:
Kevin Spacey – In total (at least) 30 men have come forward and accused Spacey of sexual assault or inappropriate behavior. He was recently acquitted of all charges (although he did have to pay the MRC production company $31 million at one point for breaching their sexual harassment policy…). When discussing dealing with a person after their name has legally been “cleared”, I think this article says it best. While we should put some trust into the justice system, I do also believe it is extremely broken, especially when it comes to protecting victims of sexual assault – and when the perpetrator is a celebrity, a promising athlete, a politician… well then all bets are off. I mean… 30. 30 men. And he was acquitted. He is already talking about his next projects.
James Franco – fuck you and your “sex addiction”. Looks like you laid low for a while and are attempting a comeback just like the rest. Big shock.
By continuing to support these people you are not only saying that you don’t care about what they’ve done, you are saying that you don’t care about the victims, that a movie is more important than somebody’s life. Separating the art from the artist is not possible, art is and always will be a part of the artist. Art reflects the morals and interests of the artist, both visually and behind the scenes. Art fuels the artist, both while creating and after creation, first as an outlet and then as a source of validation, emotionally and financially. By separating the art from the artist, you absolve yourself of the guilt of knowing that you are directly fueling an artist. An artist who only creates more when they have more fuel, and more created means a bigger audience, and the larger the audience, the more access to… I dunno, young impressional girls to rape. But at least you separated the art from the artist, right?
And a last note, this is a list mainly focused on perpetrators of sexual assaults, therefore the common defense people have is that (for those who have not been found guilty, or who have never admitted guilt) the victims are lying. Well, I’m here to tell you that you are dumb. I’m so sorry, I meant to type dumb. Oh gosh, I did it again. I meant, misinformed. To help better inform you, I’ve included some links to research. This one is a over a 10 year period of reports to Northwestern University, 8 out of 136 (5.6%) were false. Most sexual assaults aren’t reported at all (this specific article says 63% don’t report), because of the backlash, the emotional distress, and because we know we aren’t going to be believed. This article also includes multiple studies, one that shows the false reporting percentages at 7%, with a multi-site study that includes thousands (2,059) of reports, and another study with 812 reports with a false reporting percentage of 2.1%. My point here being, cases that are reported are more than likely true. And, regardless of gender, you’re more likely to be raped than falsely accused of rape. So. Maybe sort out your priorities.