Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President John Bailey has denied an allegation of sexual misconduct against him in a memo sent to the organization’s staff, multiple trade publications reported Saturday.
In the memo, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter and Variety, Bailey called recent media reports “false” and said they “have only served to tarnish my 50 year career.”
On March 16, Variety and THR, citing unnamed sources, reported that the Academy opened an investigation after receiving three claims of sexual harassment against Bailey. In his memo, per the trade reports, Bailey said there was a “single named complaint” from more than a decade ago regarding an allegation “in which I am alleged to have to attempted to touch a woman inappropriately while we were both riding in a transport van on a movie set. That did not happen.”
Representatives for the Academy did not immediately respond to EW’s request for comment on Saturday. The organization has not yet commented beyond a March 16 statement that did not specifically mention the allegations against Bailey but said that the organization treats all complaints against Academy members confidentially and conducts a review to report to board members.
Bailey wrote in his memo that he has not commented before now to “allow the Academy process to play out.”
The award-winning cinematographer was elected president of the Academy in August, succeeding previous president Cheryl Boone Isaacs. The reported of alleged misconduct against him come as Hollywood is reckoning with its history of sexual harassment and misconduct in the industry, as seen in the Time’s Up and #metoo movements.
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