Following allegations of sexual misconduct against Bill Murray, acclaimed director and longtime collaborator Wes Anderson now defends the actor. Murray has worked with Anderson on nine films in total, including Rushmore, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and The French Dispatch, and is also widely known for starring in Ghostbusters and Groundhog Day. Murray was formally accused of sexual misconduct last year on the set of Aziz Ansari's now-cancelled film Being Mortal.

Now, ahead of the release of his film Asteroid City, Anderson defends Murray in an interview with IndieWire, confirming that the allegations won't affect his working relationship with the actor. Murray was actually originally supposed to appear in Asteroid City, Anderson reveals, but had to drop out at the last minute after testing positive for COVID-19. Check out Anderson's full comment below:

“My experience with Bill is so extensive. Bill was such a great er of me from the very beginning. I don’t want to speak about somebody else’s experience, but he’s really part of my family. You know, he’s my daughter’s godfather. In fact, he actually baptized her. He’s the one who splashed the water.”

The Sexual Misconduct Allegations Against Bill Murray Explained

Bill Murray holding a phone to his ear in The Grand Budapest Hotel.

After starring in Parks and Recreation and creating his own Netflix show with Master of None, Ansari was set to make his feature directorial debut with Being Mortal, which is based on a book of the same name by Atul Gawande. In addition to Murray, the film was set to star Keke Palmer and Seth Rogen, but Searchlight, the studio behind the feature, shut the Being Mortal production down indefinitely in April 2022.

Details would subsequently emerge about the reason behind the shutdown of Being Mortal, with Murray alleged to have straddled and attempted to kiss a younger female production staffer. The stafferreportedly filed an official complaint against the actor regarding the incident. Murray would subsequently address the incident, saying "I did something I thought was funny, and it wasn’t taken that way," adding that the experience has been an "education" for him and that he hopes work on Being Mortal resumes.

Work on the film didn't resume, of course, and Murray reportedly paid the victim more than $100,000 as part of a settlement deal, according to an October report from Puck. Ansari has since found a new directorial debut in Good Fortune, a film that has unfortunately also suffered a production shutdown, but this time due to the ongoing WGA strike. It remains to be seen what roles Murray will take on next, but it's clear that Anderson wouldn't think twice about working with the actor on future projects.

Source: IndieWire