Timothée Chalamet is a name you're most likely seeing everywhere lately since he's starred in two buzzed-about films that are raking in tons of nominations and awards, Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name. During the summer of 2017 though, he filmed a movie with none other than Selena Gomez in New York City, which fans were excited to see what it's all about since details surrounding the project have been mostly kept under wraps.
Until they saw who directed the film: Woody Allen. Woody is a very well-known, accomplished filmmaker, so it seems like this would be really exciting for Selena and Timothée as young actors to be starring in one of his films. But Woody has sexual assault accusations against him that date back to the early 1990s, stemming from his adoptive daughter Dylan Farrow, who has remained vocal about the abuse she faced from him still to this day. He also ended up marrying the adoptive daughter of his former wife, so to say the man is complicated and controversial is to say the least. Many actors have said they have no interest in working with Woody because of these very serious allegations against him, so it was a bit surprising to see that Selena, someone who has been known to use her platform as a way of raising awareness about very important issues and strives to give a voice to those who might feel like they don't have one, was the lead actress in his film. Surely Selena, Timothée, their other co-star Elle Fanning, and anyone who works with Woody is aware of this situation. So why would they work with the man anyway, especially when Hollywood and what seems like the whole world is finally waking up, listening to and believing women who have survived sexual abuse and misconduct and action is being taken?
Selena was asked about her decision to star in Woody's movie during her Billboard cover story back in November and what she thought about the allegations against him and Harvey Weinstein, a famed film producer who was a Hollywood heavyweight before multiple women came forward with their stories about how he awfully mistreated and assaulted them.
"To be honest, I’m not sure how to answer — not because I’m trying to back away from it. [The Harvey Weinstein allegations] actually happened right after I had started [on the movie]. They popped up in the midst of it. And that’s something, yes, I had to face and discuss. I stepped back and thought, 'Wow, the universe works in interesting ways,'" Selena said about working with Woody. Timothée, on the other hand, seems to already regret ever taking the part in this movie and he's taking steps toward making things right. He recently shared a message on Instagram that although he can't speak about his decision to star in the movie just yet, he did want everyone to know that he's planning to donate his entire salary he made from the film to three charities: Time's Up, the LGBT Center of New York, and RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network).
It's commendable the 22-year-old actor is donating the money he earned to organizations that are all about supporting important causes, so now we're all wondering if and when Selena will make her own amends of sorts. Her mom Mandy Teefey didn't hold back on Instagram when someone told her to "make Selena write an apology about the Woody Allen film." Mandy reminded everyone that her daughter is an adult who can make her own choices, but Mandy made it clear she advised the "Wolves" songstress not to do the film to begin with.
"Sorry, no one can make Selena do anything she doesn't want to do. I had a long talk with her about no working with him and it didn't click. Her team are amazing people. There is no fall person here. No one controls her. She makes all her own decisions. No matter how hard you try to advise. It falls on deaf ears," Mandy wrote.
So Mandy seems to have the same ideas that many of us have: Woody isn't the type of person Selena should have worked with. Period. Point-blank. But she did, so now what? Many of her fans have made it clear they don't agree with her choice but it's already said and done. Perhaps Selena will take this as a learning experience as we're sure she will, and she'll really think about who she aligns herself with when it comes to future projects. She is a strong woman, we all know that. Selena has been through so much and has preserved to be the person she is today. She's always so open and honest with her fans about her personal struggles, heartbreaks, moments of triumph, and everything in-between. So while we eagerly wait for her to reflect on this moment in her career, I personally hope next time, Selena does better. There are countless young people she knows look up to her. They learn from her. I know Selena will learn from this too.
If you or someone you know needs help, please call 1-800-656-HOPE to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.
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