Advertisement
This Article is From Feb 02, 2014

Oscar winner Woody Allen accused of sexual abuse by adopted daughter

Oscar winner Woody Allen accused of sexual abuse by adopted daughter
New Delhi: Oscar-winning filmmaker Woody Allen's adopted daughter Dylan Farrow has accused her father for sexually abusing her when she was seven, reopening an episode after 21 years.

Farrow, 28, wrote an open letter in the New York Times, accusing Allen of "sexually assaulting" her back in 1993.

Allegations of abuse began in 1993, but Allen, 77, has consistently denied any wrongdoing, and has maintained his innocence.

"What's your favorite Woody Allen movie? Before you answer, you should know: when I was seven years old, Woody Allen took me by the hand and led me into a dim, closet-like attic on the second floor of our house. He told me to lay on my stomach and play with my brother's electric train set. Then he sexually assaulted me.

"He talked to me while he did it, whispering that I was a good girl, that this was our secret, promising that we'd go to Paris and I'd be a star in his movies. I remember staring at that toy train, focusing on it as it traveled in its circle around the attic. To this day, I find it difficult to look at toy trains," she wrote in the letter.

Allen, 77, and Dylan's mother Mia Farrow, 68, began dating in 1980 and adopted Dylan and her brother Moses in 1987. During a custody battle for the children in 1992, Farrow filed charges of molestation against Allen, but the case was later dropped.

"For as long as I could remember, my father had been doing things to me that I didn't like. I didn't like how often he would take me away from my mom, siblings and friends to be alone with him," Farrow continued.

"These things happened so often, so routinely, so skillfully hidden from a mother that would have protected me had she known, that I thought it was normal. I thought this was how fathers doted on their daughters. But what he did to me in the attic felt different. I couldn't keep the secret anymore," she added.

Allen is again nominated for Academy Awards this year for comedy-drama 'Blue Jasmine'.

Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world

Follow us:
Listen to the latest songs, only on JioSaavn.com