June 16, 2017
Actress-filmmaker Elizabeth Banks, who
condemned Steven Spielberg for lack of female leads in his movies, has
apologised to the filmmaker.
Banks received flak on social media for the remarks, which she made
when accepting Women in Film's Excellence in Film Award on June 13,
reports aceshowbiz.com.
"I went to 'Indiana Jones' and 'Jaws' and every movie Steven Spielberg
ever made, and by the way, he's never made a movie with a female lead,"
she said in her speech, before adding: "Sorry, Steven. I don't mean to
call your a**, out but it's true."
The quote went viral on Twitter, with many people pointing out that
Banks seemed to forget that Spielberg directed 1985's iconic
female-driven film "The Color Purple".
On Thursday, the "Pitch Perfect" star and director issued a lengthy
apology statement through an Instagram and Twitter post.
"I messed up. When referring to Steven Spielberg at the Women in Film
awards, I framed my comments about his films inaccurately. I want to be
clear from the start that I take full responsibility for what I said
and I'm sorry," Banks wrote in the statement.
"When I made the comments, I was thinking of recent films Steven
directed, it was not my intention to dismiss the import of the iconic
'The Color Purple'," she continued.
"I made things worse by giving the impression that I was dismissing
Shari Belafonte when she attempted to correct me. I spoke with Shari
backstage and she was kind enough to forgive me. Those who have the
privilege and honour of directing and producing films should be held to
account for our mistakes, whether it's about diversity or inaccurate
statements. I'm very sorry."