American actor Casey Affleck has decided to withdraw from participating in the upcoming Oscars Awards ceremony, wherein he was supposed to present this year's best actress award. It is currently speculated that his withdrawal from the prestigious ceremony is caused by the rise of the "MeToo" and "Time's Up" movement, especially since the 42-year-old actor had previously been accused of sexual harassment in the past.
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, it is tradition for the winner of the best actor award from the previous year to present the award for the next winner for best actress the following year. However, this tradition will once again be broken, and it may be due to the flurry of circumstances that have been occurring in the entertainment business as of late. Affleck bagged the best actor award in 2017 for his performance in the film "Manchester by the Sea."
Affleck had been formerly sued by two women, who were his co-workers back in 2010, alleging that the actor had made inappropriate advances toward them during the filming of the 2010 film "I'm Still Here" -- which Affleck directed. The accusers were "I'm Still Here" producer Amanda White and Magdalena Gorka, who was the director of photography for the film.
White alleged that Affleck withheld her pay since she would not give in to his request to spend one night at a hotel room with the actor, and claimed that she was very uncomfortable working with him because of multiple instances of "unwelcome advances."
Although the issues had already been settled in the past, they have come back to haunt him, as they have resurfaced in light of the female-oriented campaigns that have recently been taking place. It is notable to mention that Affleck denied all of the allegations made against him. However, this has not stopped the people of the internet from pre-emptively disapproving Affleck's appearance in this year's Oscar Awards.
