Contrition was the theme of Kate Winslet’s acceptance speech at the London Critics’ Circle Awards on Sunday. The actress took inspiration from the second Women’s March while accepting the Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Film, saying that she was determined to express the “bitter regrets” she has over working with unnamed abusive men in the film industry—particularly the “directors, producers, and men of power who have for decades been awarded and applauded for their highly regarded work by both this industry and moviegoers alike.”
“As women around the world and from all walks of life marched last weekend, once again joining together to speak out against harassment, exploitation, and abuse, I realized that I wouldn’t be able to stand here this evening and keep to myself some bitter regrets that I have about poor decisions to work with individuals with whom I wish I had not,” she said, according to the BBC.
“It has become clear to me that by not saying anything, I might be adding to the anguish of many courageous women and men. Sexual abuse is a crime,” she added. “While it rests with the rule of law to pass judgment, it lies with all of us to listen to the smallest of voices and to never stop listening . . . I know we all stand together in hoping that this moment in history paves the way for a transformed future for generation upon generation to come.”
Though Winslet didn’t directly name any of the men she was alluding to, the Oscar winner was recently criticized for continuing to work with and praise controversial filmmaker Woody Allen. She starred in his most recent feature film, Wonder Wheel, and has spoken warmly of him on the press circuit. Allen’s estranged daughter, Dylan Farrow, has accused him of sexually abusing her as a child, writing two separate op-eds detailing her claims in the last few years. Allen has denied the accusations for years, most directly in an op-ed published in The New York Times in 2014, shortly after Farrow’s first op-ed.
When asked overtly about the allegations last September, Winslet replied, “Of course one thinks about it. But at the same time, I didn’t know Woody and I don’t know anything about that family. As the actor in the film, you just have to step away and say, I don’t know anything, really, and whether any of it is true or false.” She added, unprompted, that she’d also had an “extraordinary” experience working with Roman Polanski on the 2011 film Carnage. Polanski was charged with raping a 13-year-old girl in Los Angeles in 1977; he ultimately pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of unlawful sex with a minor.
During her Critics’ Circle speech, Winslet might have also been referring to Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced producer who has been accused of sexual misconduct by dozens of women. (Through a spokesperson, Weinstein has denied all accusations of nonconsensual acts.) Winslet worked with Weinstein most notably on the 2008 film The Reader, which earned her an Oscar statuette for best actress. However, she didn’t thank the producer during her acceptance speech, revealing last October that she made that decision on purpose: “That was absolutely deliberate,” she said. “It was nothing to do with not being grateful. If people aren’t well-behaved, why would I thank him?”
Winslet has been vocal about her distaste for Weinstein in the past, adding in October that he was a “bullying and nasty” person to work with. “The fact that I’m never going to have to deal with Harvey Weinstein again as long as I live is one of the best things that’s ever happened, and I’m sure the feeling is universal,” she said then.
The London Critics’ Circle picked up the theme of Winslet’s speech by handing the film-of-the-year award to Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Martin McDonagh’s controversial drama about a woman seeking vengeance for her daughter who was raped and murdered. Three Billboards has been sweeping the awards circuit this year—and though the London Critics’ Circle likely will not influence the Oscars in any way (and McDonagh, a native Londoner, had a hometown advantage), its win seems like another sign that the film could take the top prize at this year’s Academy Awards.
