DRAMA

Woody Allen Sues Amazon Studios for Terminating Movie Contract

The retail giant backed out of the deal last June, citing sexual-assault allegations against the famed filmmaker.

Woody Allen filed a lawsuit against Amazon Studios Thursday, alleging the retail titan unlawfully breached a contract by declining to distribute his new film A Rainy Day in New York and withdrawing from a production and distribution deal for four more films, The Wall Street Journal reports. The $68 million lawsuit claims that after then-president Roy Price left Amazon Studios over harassment allegations, the company asked Allen to push back the release of A Rainy Day in New York due to the allegations of sexual assault leveled by his daughter, Dylan. Allen reportedly agreed to move the release date from 2018 to 2019. But last June, the lawsuit claims, Amazon withdrew from the deal entirely, citing “supervening events, including renewed allegations against Mr. Allen, his own controversial comments, and the increasing refusal of top talent to work with or be associated with him in any way, all of which have frustrated the purpose of the agreement.”

The lawsuit decries that decision. “Amazon has tried to excuse its action by referencing a 25-year-old baseless allegation against Mr. Allen, but that allegation was already well-known to Amazon (and the public) before Amazon entered into four separate deals with Mr. Allen,” the suit claims, “And in any event, it does not provide a basis for Amazon to terminate the contract.”

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