14 DAY TRIAL // Hollywood is shaken to the core by the allegations made by a 31-year-old man named Michael F. Egan III, who says that, when he was a teen aspiring actor, he was repeatedly drugged and raped by several big hotshots, including director Bryan Singer.
Since the claims, which were formulated in a lawsuit that went into graphic details of the repeated assaults, Singer has not said a peep even as the other alleged rapists issued denial after denial. He’s doing so now.
In a statement to The Guardian, Singer, who is openly gay, announces that he’s pulling out of the promo for his latest movie, the highly anticipated “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” because he doesn’t want the scandal to overshadow its performance at the box office or, for that matter, to ruin the experience for fans.
“I do not want these fictitious claims to divert ANY attention from X-Men: Days of Future Past. This fantastic film is a labor of love and one of the greatest experiences of my career. So, out of respect to all of the extraordinary contributions from the incredibly talented actors and crew involved, I've decided not to participate in the upcoming media events for the film,” Singer says.
“However, I promise when this situation is over, the facts will show this to be the sick twisted shakedown it is. I want to thank fans, friends and family for all their amazing and overwhelming support,” the director continues in the statement.
He will probably go off the grid for a while, until the movie completes its theatrical run, but he is expected to deny the accusations in court. Considering their severity, he might as well: Egan claims that, when he was about 14 or 15, he ended up at one of Singer’s famous house parties, with his first night there concluding with him being raped in the pool.
Singer has a reputation for surrounding himself with very young boys, especially at his legendary parties, which, on occasion, are said to have included as many as 1,200 guests. Word has it that he has a network of friends and acquaintances from a more dubious line of work who introduce him to young men whom he would be otherwise too “shy” to approach.
Drugs and alcohol are freely distributed at said parties and, according to Egan, he was given lots of them that night. In fact, he says, he was “forced” to take cocaine and finally coerced into the lewd acts with the promise of a role in one of Singer’s movies.
The case is ongoing.