Paul HaggisPicture: Andres Iglesias RodrÃguez (Getty Images)
Paul Haggis, the filmmaker behind the surprisingly best 2006 film Crash, has been arrested in Italy on “charges of sexual assault and aggravated personal injury.” This comes from Variety, which says that an “as yet unidentified woman” (all we know is that she is not Italian) filed charges against Haggis, accusing him of forcing her to “have sex for two days.” .
A police report says Haggis allegedly assaulted the woman and then took her to Papola Casale Airport “on Sunday morning in the morning of the crack” and left her there alone with “precarious physical and psychological conditions.” The airport staff gave her first aid and took her to the police, where she filed charges against Haggis, and then the police took her to a hospital.
Haggis is currently in Italy for the new film event Allora Fest, during which it was scheduled to host “several master classes,” according to Variety. One of the organizers of the event, Italian journalist Siliva Bizio, confirmed that Haggis had been arrested and thathora Fest was “completely moving away” from him.
This new complaint comes after four women accused Haggis of sexual misconduct in 2018. One of those allegations, later identified as a publicist, said Haggis had “violently raped her after a 2013 premiere” and had filed a civil lawsuit against him. Haggis has denied these allegations, and his lawyer suggested in 2018 that they may have been motivated by Haggis’ criticisms of Scientology (he had been a member for several decades before leaving the organization in 2009). Variety notes that the lawsuit related to this lawsuit has not yet been filed due to delays related to VOCID.
In addition to writing and directing Crash, Haggis also wrote Million Dollar Baby and worked on the scripts for Casino Royale and Quantum Of Solace.