Pierce Brosnan doesn't know if he'd work with Roman Polanski today, based on allegations of sexual harassment and assault against the filmmaker in the wake of the #MeToo movement
Brosnan, 67, appeared in The Ghost Writer, Polanski's 2010 movie based on Robert Harris' novel The Ghost, despite the director being in exile in Europe after running from a 1977 rape conviction in America.
Explaining his decision to work with the Chinatown filmmaker more than a decade ago, Brosnan tells The Guardian: "I took to the role and to the part in The Ghost Writer because of the work that Roman has done as an artist, as a director. I didn't let the rest of his life influence my choice. I had to be honest with myself and know that justice had been done, half undone, and went forth as an actor."
Following the exposure of disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein in 2017, and the #MeToo movement it inspired, more women have come forward to make, or repeat, past allegations of sexual assault against Polanski - which he denies.
Asked if he would work with the 86-year-old filmmaker now, the former James Bond actor responds: "I don't know if, in this climate, I would have made the same decision, the same choice. These are dangerous times and it's a very toxic world. I don't know."
Polanski confessed to having unlawful sex with Samantha Geimer, a minor, at a Hollywood party, and served 42 days in prison, but later fled the U.S. over concerns that a plea bargain deal would be scrapped. U.S. officials have long sought to bring him to justice and he has faced renewed allegations that prompted activists to protest the release of his latest movie, An Officer and a Spy.
Brosnan goes on to say that he found the Weinstein scandal profoundly troubling and hopes the entertainment industry has changed for the better.
"It was absolutely appalling and really has changed the landscape and the workplace for women in Hollywood," he muses. "It was a mighty fall from grace and one that was really ugly and sad for all parties concerned.
"That this man should have acquitted himself in such a fashion in the company of young women who were trying to make a career for themselves - it was upsetting to see that behaviour unfold on a daily, weekly basis."
