Alan Markfield/Twentieth Century Fox 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' director Bryan Singer, right, pictured on set with cast member Patrick Stewart, is bowing out of interviews because a scandalous sex abuse lawsuit is taking attention away from the movie. "X-Men" director Bryan Singer, accused in federal court of sexually abusing a teen, plans to pull a superhero-like move and make himself invisible through the upcoming premier of his new flick next month.
The allegation made by a little-known actor from Nevada last week had already prompted Singer to drop out of a WonderCon appearance last weekend, and on Thursday the director said he'll be skipping all promotional events for "X-Men: Days of Future Past," which hits theaters May 23.
Singer, who is accused in a civil lawsuit of sodomizing Michael Egan III when the latter was just 15, said he decided to lay low during all things promo so the allegations would not overshadow the work of his stellar cast, which includes Hugh Jackman, Michael Fassbender and Jennifer Lawrence.
"The allegations against me are outrageous, vicious and completely false. I do not want these fictitious claims to divert any attention from 'X-Men: Days of Future Past,'" Singer said in a statement obtained by the Daily News.
"This fantastic film is a labor of love and one of the greatest experiences of my career. So, out of respect to all of the extraordinary contributions from the incredibly talented actors and crew involved, I've decided not to participate in the upcoming media events for the film," he said.
Damian Dovarganes/AP Michael Egan, left, alleges in a federal lawsuit filed in Hawaii that director Bryan Singer sexually abused him as a teenager. "However, I promise when this situation is over, the facts will show this to be the sick, twisted shakedown it is," he added.
Egan filed suit in federal court in Hawaii last week, accusing the director of sexually abusing him during the late '90s as part of a "sordid sex ring" that preyed on teen boys looking to break into the industry.
Egan, now 31, claims Singer and three other media moguls began sexually assaulting him at "notorious" drug-fueled house parties when he was new to Los Angeles and working as an actor for another member of the alleged ring. Egan's lawyer said Singer first victimized Egan when he was 15, and that Singer and the other men continued the abuse in 1999, during a series of house parties in Hawaii when Egan was 17.
In four highly similar lawsuits filed in the last two weeks, Egan lodges sexual abuse allegations against Singer, 48, as well as former WB Chairman Garth Ancier, 56, former Disney exec David Neuman, 53, and producer Gary Goddard, 61.
I do not want these fictitious claims to divert any attention from 'X-Men: Days of Future Past.'
All of the men have denied the allegations.
Ancier, a former Fox and NBC exec who programmed hits including "The Simpsons" and "The West Wing," said through his lawyer Tuesday that he never set foot in the Hawaiian estate described in Egan's suit.
Goddard's lawyer said the same thing Wednesday, calling the lawsuit "fantastical."
"Mr. Goddard was not in Hawaii with Mr. Egan. He did not molest or touch or annoy Mr. Egan or commit any of the acts alleged. Also, he did not furnish drugs or alcohol to any minor at any time," Goddard's lawyer, Alan Grodin, said.
Photo: Alan Markfield Fox will focus its press efforts on 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' stars like Hugh Jackman. Singer's lawyer, Marty Singer, previously called the allegations "reckless" and "fabricated," saying his client was never in Hawaii with Egan in 1999 or at any time.
"He was shooting a movie out of the country, and we have at least a hundred witnesses who can testify that Bryan was on set and was not in Hawaii," the lawyer told The News.
"This is a shakedown. It's all about money," added Marty Singer, who is not related to his client.
At a press conference Monday, Egan's lawyer Jeff Herman named disgraced businessman Marc Collins-Rector as the leader of the sex ring and host of "degenerate" parties at his California mansion. Herman said the former Internet millionaire lured Egan into his private life with a $1,500-per-week acting job on an online TV show he produced.
Alan Markfield/Twentieth Century Fox Jennifer Lawrence, amother 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' cast member, may have to pick up the promotion slack after director Bryan Singer said he'd bow out due to negative publicity over a sex abuse lawsuit against him. The lawsuits claim Egan is heterosexual and never voluntarily consented to the sexual interactions but was instead drugged, held down or otherwise coerced.
Collins-Rector pointed a firearm at Egan on one occasion and locked him inside a gun safe at his Encino mansion on another, the lawsuits claim.
Collins-Rector, now believed to be living outside the country, was convicted in 2004 of transporting five minors across state lines for the purpose of having sexual encounters with them.
Neuman immediately took to Twitter on Monday to rebut Egan's accusations.
"I just want everyone to know right now that the disgusting allegations made against me are completely false," he tweeted shortly after the suits went public. "Also very shocking in that they don't just stretch the truth, they are whole-cloth lies with zero basis in reality or truth."
Singer's lawyer has accused Egan of brining the lawsuit at a time when the impending release of "X-Men: Days of Future Past" would greatly expand its exposure.
Egan said Monday he decided to come forward with the allegations after more than a decade because he is now under the care of a trauma therapist and finally found a lawyer willing to "protect" him.
"I wouldn't wish it on any of my worst enemies, to go through what I went through as a child," he said with his mom sitting beside him.
"You won't have another chance to hurt another victim," he told The News Monday, addressing the men named in his lawsuits. "You won't have a chance to hurt another child."
Egan's lawsuits were filed in Hawaii as a result of a state law there that temporarily suspends the statute of limitations on sex abuse claims brought in civil cases.
Source : http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/singer-bows-x-men-press-lawsuit-scandal-article-1.1768082
