Roman Polanski: Director acquitted in defamation case against Charlotte Lewis

Roman Polanski: Director acquitted in defamation case against Charlotte Lewis

The evaluated facts date back to 2019. In an interview with Paris Match, Roman Polanski denied comments made by English actress Charlotte Lewis, who accused him of raping her during a casting call in 1983 when she was 16. A “clever lie” According to the Franco-Polish film director.

“The first quality of a good liar is an excellent memory”said the director of The Pianist, who won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2002. “Charlotte Lewis is always mentioned in my list of defendants without any indication of her objections.”

He has already been accused by dozens of women of sexual assault and rape throughout his career and is considered a fugitive from the United States, the country he fled to more than four decades ago after being convicted. “illegal sexual intercourse” Samantha Gailey (now a gamer), then a minor, and 13-year-old Roman Polanski were tried in Paris (in his absence) to determine whether his statements amounted to defamation.

If a woman were to come to me today and tell me that she was raped and ask me if she should reveal it, I would say: No!

According to the court, no who delivered a verdict of acquittal in this case this Tuesday, May 14, 2024. “put out to pasture” In “The Context of Suppressing #MeToo” According to his lawyers, who condemned A “absurd trial”The director did not see the guilty verdict sought against him at the end of the requisition.

But his defense was notably based on the objections of Charlotte Lewis, who admitted she did not file a rape complaint because of the statute of limitations and expressed her admiration for Roman Polanski in an interview with the tabloid. News of the world in 1999. Statements that are partially opposed by key stakeholders.

Rape trial in 2025

During the trial, which took place in March last year, Charlotte Lewis denounced “smear campaign” which has hits “Almost Ruined Life” After he said at a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival in 2010: “I’d rather not say anything”he said at the hearing. “Today, if a woman comes and tells me that she was raped and asks me if she should reveal it, I will say: No! Put an end to all this, move on with your life.”

While his new feature film, The Palace, opens in French cinemas this Wednesday, May 15, after his recent visit to the Venice Film Festival, Roman Polanski will be tried in 2025 and in California for the rape of a teenager that took place in St. 1973 and which he still strongly opposes.

Source: Allocine

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