The "unconditional support" the director has enjoyed from the French film establishment seems to be crumbling after a new rape claim. Valentine Monnier claimed Polanski tried to make her swallow a pill when he pounced on her after they had gone skiing in Gstaad. Despite being forced to step down as president of the French Oscars in 2017 after protests by feminist groups, Polanski has weathered previous allegations of rape and sexual assault from other women. In her letter, Monnier criticised the "unconditional support that (French) artists and intellectuals" have long given Polanski. The director, who was convicted of rape in 1977 has been accused of beating and raping a second girl in 1975.

Source: The Local November 13, 2019 08:25 UTC