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Griffin Newman donates salary from Woody Allen movie to sexual assault organisation

Actor Griffin Newman has donated his entire salary from an upcoming Woody Allen project to an anti-sexual violence organization.

The 28-year-old, most famous for his TV work on shows like Vinyl, The Tick and Cop Show, took to his Twitter page on Saturday (14Oct17) to tell his followers he “deeply regrets” having worked with the controversial director on the as yet untitled film, which also stars Selena Gomez and Jude Law.

In 2014, Allen’s adopted daughter Dylan Farrow penned an open letter for the New York Times in which she detailed several occurrences of the filmmaker allegedly sexually assaulting her, and Newman told his followers that he believes Allen is guilty.

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In fact, he’s so certain about Allen’s guilt and regretful about his decision to put his career ahead of his morals, that he has decided to give the money he earned from the project to RAINN – the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network.

https://twitter.com/GriffLightning/status/919333638193414147

https://twitter.com/GriffLightning/status/919334227275145216

“I need to get this off my chest: I worked on Woody Allen’s next movie. I believe he is guilty. I donated my entire salary to RAINN,” he tweeted. “It’s a one scene role. I spent a month debating whether or not to quit. I deeply regret my final decision.

https://twitter.com/GriffLightning/status/919334671032438785

https://twitter.com/GriffLightning/status/919336301165531136

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“Why didn’t I quit? My parents were incredibly proud. I felt there things to be gained from the experience on that set. I was a coward. It was an educational experience for all the wrong reasons. I learned conclusively that I cannot put my career over my morals again.”

Newman added that the recent accusations against movie producer Harvey Weinstein, and the claims that he sexually harassed legions of women in Hollywood over a three-decade period, prompted him to make the decision to publicly denounce Allen.

https://twitter.com/GriffLightning/status/919338418722701314

“I had been feeling this way for the last month, but the awful continuance revelations of the last week compounded my guilt ten fold,” he explained. “I’ve spent the last decade struggling as an actor, and learned to sideline my views because the thought of closing any doors was terrifying… It’s time to show a courage in my actions mirroring my words without concession… To anyone who thinks I took the easy way out by taking the job THEN denouncing it, I assure you that is the worst combination of choices.”

Newman added to a follower who questioned his decision: “I have unequivocally believed that he (Allen) is guilty since reading Dylan Farrow’s NY Times piece.”

He later told fans that he has decided to take a week away from Twitter following the backlash he has received from his remarks.

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