American Director Paul Haggis Admits ‘Two Mistakes’ But Denies Rape in Italy
American director Paul Haggis, who is under house arrest after being charged with raping a woman at a hotel while he was running a film festival in Italy, admitted to an Italian newspaper that he made two “mistakes” but floated several uncorroborated theories and assumptions as he denied raping anyone.
“My first mistake was to allow someone I hardly knew to come and see me. It was nonsense,” he told La Repubblica, admitting that the unnamed British woman who initially said her rape wounds needed medical treatment was a guest in his hotel in Ostuni, Puglia, and that they had what he calls consensual sex.
“The second mistake occurred on the last morning, when something happened that I found particularly unpleasant and I decided to end this situation. I accompanied that woman to the airport a few hours before her flight.”