Petition Launches to Fire Red Sonja Director Bryan Singer
A petition has surfaced online to remove Bryan Singer as director of the Red Sonja remake. Singer has been subject to a great deal of controversy in recent years, given the various sexual misconduct claims made against him, which span decades. Recently, a bombshell expose revealed four new accusers who claim that the filmmaker committed sexual abuse against them when they were underage, ranging from fondling to sexual intercourse. In the wake of these new claims, a petition has been created to get him out of the director’s chair for his next big gig.
The petition was set up on Change.org and was created by Ralph Malcowitz. The petition is specifically aimed at Millennium Films, the company behind Red Sonja. We first learned that Bryan Singer was being eyed for the job in September of last year. At the time, he had recently been fired from Bohemian Rhapsody (even though he remains the credited director) and was facing a lawsuit from Cesar Sanchez-Guzman, who claims Singer raped him. That lawsuit is still pending. The petition reads as follows.
“Bryan Singer has had accusations of sexual abuse and pedophilia around him for decades and nothing has been done about it. In the current climate of the MeToo movement and with the recent publication of the expose article by The Atlantic it is irresponsible for Millennium Films to pursue any further with the development of ‘Red Sonja‘ with Bryan Singer attached. We ask that you please terminate him from the project and bringing on another director on board, perhaps a female director. If you do not terminate him from the project we the people who have signed this refuse to support this film as well as any other project you have coming down the pipeline. Thank you for your time and I hope you consider doing the right thing.”
As of this writing, the petition has garnered just 264 signatures, but when news initially broke of Bryan Singer being hired for the job, it was harshly criticized. In light of these new allegations, it’s difficult to imagine that Millennium Films could safely continue on down this path without some very serious blowback. Not to mention that this is being eyed as a project with franchise potential that could represent a big opportunity for another director.
This isn’t the first time Bryan Singer has been the subject of a similar petition. In 2017, students at the USC School of Cinematic Arts petitioned, successfully we should add, to have his name removed from the Division of Cinema and Media Studies. That petition also centered on the various sexual misconduct allegations made against Singer.
Related: Red Sonja Moves Forward with a New Writer
Outside of the controversy, Red Sonja has been gestating for a very long time, with Robert Rodriguez attached to direct with Rose McGowan to star at one point. This movie will get made. Will it still be Bryan Singer behind the camera when it does? That’s for Millennium Films to decide. To check out or sign the petition, head on over to Change.org.