John Bailey, who was elected in August as the 34th president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, is being investigated by the organisation following multiple allegations of sexual harassment against him.
Three harassment claims were reportedly brought against the veteran cinematographer, whose credits include such films as Ordinary People, The Big Chill, and Groundhog Day, prompting the academy — which recently enacted new standards of conduct for its members — to open a probe.
“The Academy treats any complaints confidentially to protect all parties,” the group said in a statement released Friday afternoon. “The Membership Committee reviews all complaints brought against Academy members according to our Standards of Conduct process, and after completing reviews, reports to the Board of Governors. We will not comment further on such matters until the full review is completed.”
Variety first reported the news of the allegations. Bailey did not respond to a request for comment.
The latest in a string of public relations crises to hit the academy in recent years, the accusations against Bailey come as the group itself has been navigating the sexual misconduct scandals that have reverberated across the entertainment industry since the fall, sparking the Time’s Up movement that loomed large over this year’s awards season up to and including this month’s Oscar telecast.
In October, the board of governors of the 90-year-old institution — including such luminaries as Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy and Tom Hanks — voted to expel disgraced film mogul Harvey Weinstein from the group’s ranks following multiple charges of sexual harassment and assault against him.
In December, the academy adopted new standards of conduct that its members are expected to uphold, stating that the group is “categorically opposed to any form of abuse, harassment or discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, age, religion, or nationality.”
According to procedures outlined to members in January, accusations of misconduct against members, if deemed credible, will ultimately be brought to the 54-member board of governors, which “may take any disciplinary action permitted by the Academy’s bylaws, including suspension or expulsion.”
Some within the organisation, however, have wrestled in recent months with the implications of requiring the academy to police its members’ behaviour. Other Hollywood figures who have become ensnared in sexual misconduct controversies — including Bill Cosby, Roman Polanski, Kevin Spacey and Brett Ratner — remain members of the group.
