Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
The Schmooze

Dylan Farrow, Woody Allen’s Accuser: Scarlett Johansson Has ‘Long Way To Go’ In Understanding Assault

Updated, 1:25 PM:

This article has been updated to incorporate Dylan Farrow’s response to Johansson’s comments.

Dylan Farrow responded to comments made by actress Scarlett Johansson in support of Woody Allen. Farrow, who is Allen’s daughter, says that Allen sexually abused her when she was a child, a claim she has upheld since 1992. Allen has denied the allegations.

In a profile in the Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday, Johansson, who has starred in three of Allen’s movies, promoted his innocence.

“How do I feel about Woody Allen?” Johansson said. “I love Woody. I believe him, and I would work with him anytime.”

She went on: “I see Woody whenever I can, and I have had a lot of conversations with him about it. I have been very direct with him, and he’s very direct with me. He maintains his innocence, and I believe him.”

On Thursday, Farrow responded sarcastically to a tweet from the Los Angeles Times about the interview, writing, “Because if we’ve learned anything from the past two years it’s that you definitely should believe male predators who ‘maintain their innocence’ without question.” She added, “Scarlett has a long way to go in understanding the issue she claims to champion.”

Though Farrow’s abuse accusations have always been public, Allen’s career continued to soar between 1992 and 2017, when the revelations of the Me Too movement caused a major social reconsideration of powerful men who have faced serious sexual misconduct allegations. In December 2018, another woman spoke out about having a sexual relationship with Allen when she was a teenager.

While other actors like Timothee Chalamet and Greta Gerwig have distanced themselves from Allen, even apologizing for working with him and donating their salaries to funds for sexual abuse victims, Johansson has never erred in her support of Allen. Johansson’s comments are especially noteworthy given that she has been a high profile member of the Hollywood branch of the Me Too movement — Time’s Up — and used her platform to call out hypocrisy in the movement, namely actor-director James Franco, who has been accused of sexual misconduct.

Sexual abuse is a crime that happens behind doors. Nobody knows if Woody Allen abused Dylan Farrow except Woody Allen and Dylan Farrow. Perhaps for Allen, who has been somewhat marginalized over the last two years, Johansson’s words will be a balm. But think of Farrow, who has been marginalized since she first spoke up in 1992. One of the most influential women in the world just de facto announced that Farrow is a liar.

Looks like Scarlett Johansson’s version of “me too” means finding common ground with another somewhat-disliked millionaire celebrity and defending him at the peril of an alleged victim.

Jenny Singer is the deputy life/features editor for the Forward. You can reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @jeanvaljenny

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.