Woody Allen faces backlash for saying it's acceptable to wink at women in the workplace

Woody Allen has faced a backlash for expressing support for men who wink at women in the workplace in the wake of Harvey Weinstein’s sex abuse scandal.

Allen was forced to backtrack last week after saying he felt “sad” for the Hollywood film producer who is facing rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment allegations.

The director, who was accused of molesting his adopted daughter but has strongly denied the claims, released a stronger statement afterwards clarifying that he felt sorry for Weinstein because he is a “sad, sick, man”.

Allen has also sparked fierce criticism for saying he hoped the Weinstein allegations would not lead to a “witch hunt atmosphere” in the world of work in which winking at a woman becomes wholly unacceptable.

He said: “You also don’t want it to lead to a witch-hunt atmosphere, a Salem atmosphere, where every guy in an office who winks at a woman is suddenly having to call a lawyer to defend himself”.

The remarks prompted fury on Twitter and critics of Allen argued that winking female colleagues in the workplace should never be tolerable.

“Actually don't wink at women at work. Simple rule: if you wouldn't want a dude doing it to you in prison, don't do it to a woman at work,” said Twitter user, Jenny Thompson.

“Bizarre but not unexpected comment from Woody Allen about men not being able to wink at women at work. Why would you wink at a colleague?” asked another.

“Also men please stop winking at women at work. It’s unwelcome and usually combined with other inappropriate behaviour. If you need to call a lawyer you’ve done more than 'wink”' and you know it,” added one more.

In Allen’s initial statement about Weinstein, he claimed he had heard rumours about the movie mogul but not “these horror stories”.

“No one ever came to me or told me horror stories with any real seriousness,” the Midnight In Paris director told the BBC. “And they wouldn’t, because you are not interested in it. You are interested in making your movie.

“But you do hear a million fanciful rumours all the time. And some turn out to be true and some – many – are just stories about this actress, or that actor.”

“The whole Harvey Weinstein thing is very sad for everybody involved,” he added. “Tragic for the poor women that were involved, sad for Harvey that is life is so messed up.

“There’s no winners in that, it’s just very, very sad and tragic for those poor women that had to go through that.”

After stoking controversy, Allen was forced to backtrack, saying: "When I said I felt sad for Harvey Weinstein I thought it was clear the meaning was because he is a sad, sick man”.

"I was surprised it was treated differently. Lest there be any ambiguity, this statement clarifies my intentions and feelings."

Weinstein was credited with helping Allen restore his career after he was accused of abusing Dylan Farrow, his daughter with actress Mia Farrow

The allegation emerged in the early 1990s after the couple separated, after Mia Farrow discovered that Allen was having an affair with her adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn.

More than 40 women have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct. Police forces in both the US and the UK have announced that they are investigating allegations made against the film mogul.

Weinstein denies any accusations of non-consensual sex. "Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr Weinstein. Mr Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances," his spokesperson told The Independent in a statement.