Bryan Singer's RED SONJA Movie Delayed Amid the Allegations Made Against Him
Not long after Millennium Films said that they would move forward with Bryan Singer’s Red Sonja movie regardless of the damning allegations made against him, the film has been put on hold.
The allegations came in a report from The Atlantic that focused on Singer and his thing for underage boys. Four men have accused him of having sex with them when they were younger than the age of consent. They spent 12-months investigating the director and spoke to over 50 sources. For years there have been allegations made against Singer.
Now, a spokeswoman for Millennium Films has said, “The project is not on the slate at the moment and is not for sale at the European Film Market in Berlin.”
The allegations were previously brushed off by studio head and producer Avi Lerner, who said:
"I continue to be in development for Red Sonja and Bryan Singer continues to be attached.
"The over $800 million Bohemian Rhapsody has grossed, making it the highest grossing drama in film history, is testament to his remarkable vision and acumen. I know the difference between agenda driven fake news and reality, and I am very comfortable with this decision. In America people are innocent until proven otherwise."
Obviously that comfort level has dwindled. There are a few ways that this could be playing out. The movie is being delayed due to the pressure and backlash that the studio has been getting since Lerner made those remarks, and/or new information has come to light that isn’t going to be pretty for Singer.
Singer has consistently denied misconduct, though, and previously called the Atlantic story “a homophobic smear piece” and asserted that it “rehashes claims from bogus lawsuits.”
Lerner did defend Singer again in an interview published over the weekend saying:
“The complaints I receive ask why I don’t fire him, and the answer is simple: Bryan hasn’t been found guilty of anything in court. We take these accusations in all seriousness and we looked into them, but at the moment, from what we gather, they are completely baseless.”
The social welfare organization Time's Up previously released a statement calling for claims against Singer to be investigated and noted:
"Those who hire alleged abusers must recognize that these decisions not only subject their employees to possibly unsafe working conditions, but also perpetuate a broken system that rewards powerful people and allows them to act without consequence."
Yes, an in depth investigation should be done. “Looking into” things isn’t an in-depth investigation. They need to figure this out and find out the truth of what’s going on. It’s the appropriate thing to do right now.
Regardless, I’ve always felt that Singer is the wrong director to take on Red Sonja anyway.
What are your thoughts on all this?
Source: Variety