Casey Affleck Sexual Allegations: 'Manchester' Star Speaks On Case In First Post-Oscar Interview [VIDEO]
Casey Affleck is speaking about his sexual harassment allegations in the wake of his big Oscar win.
Many Oscar voters were wowed by Affleck's subtle yet heartbreaking performance in Manchester by the Sea, enough to give him the award for Best Actor at Sunday night's ceremony. Others weren't happy with this decision, however, considering a pretty big scandal in Affleck's past.
Affleck was charged with sexual harassment by two female co-workers who worked with him on the 2010 film I'm Still Here. Producer Amanda White sued him for $2 million while the film's cinematographer, Magdalena Gorka, sued him for $2.25 million, both of them accusing him of sexual misconduct. The case was settled out of court, and neither side is able to talk about it publicly.
However, Affleck did open up slightly in a new interview with The Boston Globe following his Oscar win.
"I believe that any kind of mistreatment of anyone for any reason is unacceptable and abhorrent, and everyone deserves to be treated with respect in the workplace and anywhere else," he stated. "There's really nothing I can do about it. Other than live my life the way I know I live it and to speak to what my own values are and how I try to live by them all the time."
Affleck previously spoke about the case with The New York Times, noting, "It was settled to the satisfaction of all. I was hurt and upset - I am sure all were - but I am over it. It was an unfortunate situation - mostly for the innocent bystanders of the families of those involved."
The actor's continued awards success made some uncomfortable, especially Fresh Off the Boat star Constance Wu. The actress has been campaigning heavily against the positive attention Affleck has received, and even admitted she'd been counseled to not speak against him, but "F my career then, I'm a woman and human first. That's what my craft is built on."
Affleck is the younger brother of Ben Affleck, who has won two Oscars - Best Original Screenplay for 1998's Good Will Hunting and Best Picture for producing 2012's Argo. Casey has one previous nomination - Best Supporting Actor for 2007's The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.
