Two-time Academy Award-winner Paul Haggis accused of sexual misconduct, rape

Two-time Academy Award-winner Paul Haggis, 64, has been accused of sexual misconduct by four women, with two claiming the producer/screenwriter forced them to perform oral sex before he raped them, The Associated Press reports. "He said to me, 'Do you really want to continue working?'" one woman, a publicist, alleged. “And then he really forced himself on me."

The lawsuit was originally brought by another publicist, Haleigh Breest; the three other women subsequently came forward. Breest also claims she was raped, and said in the lawsuit that Haggis "forced her to perform oral sex on him, he fondled her, asked if she liked anal sex, then raped her," AP writes.

Another woman told AP that she managed to escape from Haggis after he told her, "I need to be inside you." Yet another accuser said Haggis "held down her arms, forcibly kissed her on a street corner, then followed her into a taxi."

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Haggis' lawyer says her client "didn't rape anybody." Haggis won both his Oscars for the 2005 Best Picture-winner Crash. He has commented on allegations against Harvey Weinstein, claiming: "Although everyone thinks it is vile behavior, you have got to focus on those who may have colluded and protected him. For me, they are as guilty as he is and in some cases more so, if I can say that. I mean, he was a predator and a predator is a predator. But what about those who would rather look the other way?”