Allen’s memoir is out after all
The filmmaker’s book, “Apropos of Nothing,” finds a new publisher after outcry spurred recent cancellation.
Woody Allen’s memoir has found a new home.
After Hachette Book Group canceled its release of “Apropos of Nothing” because of protests this month, Allen’s memoir was put out Monday by the independent press Arcade Publishing, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing.
“The book is a candid and comprehensive personal account by Woody Allen of his life, ranging from his childhood in Brooklyn through his acclaimed career in film, theater, television, print and standup comedy, as well as exploring his relationships with family and friends,” Arcade announced.
Financial details for the 400-page book were not revealed, said the AP, which was first to report the release news.
“I think it was inevitable that this book was going to be published,” said a Hachette employee who asked to remain anonymous, “especially after the hubbub with Hachette saying it was going to publish it, Ronan [Farrow] coming out and criticizing them, and employees saying they were uncomfortable with its publication.”
The memoir starts off nostalgic, with Allen detailing his upbringing in New York City and his romantic affairs with Hollywood actresses. But it grows defensive as he writes about his relationship with Mia Farrow and accusations that he molested their daughter Dylan Farrow when she was a child, which he calls a “fabrication” in the memoir.
Toward the book’s end, Allen writes about how difficult it was to cast his film after 2019’s “A Rainy Day in New York,” which was not released in the U.S.
“One after the other, actors and actresses refused to work with me. Some I’m sure sincerely believed I was a predator. (I still can’t figure out how they could be so utterly convinced.) Clearly, a number of actors thought they were doing a noble thing rejecting offers to appear in my film,” he writes. “Their gesture might’ve been meaningful if indeed I were guilty of something, but since I was not, they were just persecuting an innocent man and helping to confirm Dylan’s implanted memory. Unwittingly, they had become Mia’s enablers.”
Mia, Ronan and Dylan Farrow did not immediately respond for comment.