Woody Allen memoir responds to sexual abuse allegations and details his family relationships

‘Apropos of Nothing’ was published on Monday despite outcry

Woody Allen has used his new memoir to respond to allegations of child sexual abuse made against him.

The filmmaker has long denied claims he abused his daughter Dylan Farrow when she was a child. He has now broached the topic in Apropos of Nothing, which was released on Monday by Arcade Publishing after being dropped by Hachette.

According to the Associated Press, Allen claims the allegations were the result of an “Ahab-like quest” for revenge by his former partner Mia Farrow.

“I never laid a finger on Dylan, never did anything to her that could be even misconstrued as abusing her; it was a total fabrication from start to finish,” Allen writes in the new book.

Dylan Farrow has stood by her allegations that she was abused by Allen. She has received renewed support in the wake of the #MeToo movement, and some have called for actors to no longer work with the filmmaker.

In the memoir, Allen also discusses his relationship with Soon-Yi Previn​, Mia Farrow and André Previn’s daughter who married Allen in 1997.

“At the very early stages of our new relationship, when lust reigns supreme ... we couldn’t keep our hands off each other,” Allen writes according to AP.

The Independent has contacted Dylan Farrow as well as Mia Farrow’s representatives for comment.

Apropos of Nothing’s Monday release came as a surprise. The book was dropped by Hachette earlier this month after widespread outcry over the planned publication, which notably led employees at Hachette to stage a walkout.

Dylan Farrow and her brother Ronan also condemned the planned memoir in separate statements at the time.