Asia Argento accuses Rob of sexual assault
Los Angeles: Italian actor-director Asia Argento made serious accusations against 'The Fast and the Furious' director Rob Cohen of sexual abuse.
Argento, who is one of the most outspoken voices against sexual harassment in the entertainment industry and an early accuser of disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein made the allegations against Cohen in an interview with the Italian newspaper 'Il Corriere della Sera'.
She claimed that Cohen had abused her and made her drink GHB, an anesthetic associated with date rape.
"At the time, I really did not know what it was. I woke up in the morning naked in his bed," said Argento.
She further alleged that the assault took place while she was filming 2002 Cohen-directed actioner 'xXx' alongside Vin Diesel and Samuel L Jackson.
Addressing the allegations, Cohen's spokesperson said that the claims made by Argento were 'absolutely false'.
"Rob Cohen categorically denies Asia Argento's accusation of assault against him as absolutely false. When they worked together, they had an excellent working relationship and Cohen considered her a friend, so this claim dating back to 2002 is bewildering, especially given what has been reported about her in recent years," the spokesperson said in a statement issued to 'Deadline'.
Argento also mentioned the accusations against Cohen in her upcoming autobiography 'Anatomy of a Wild Heart', which will release in Italy today.
Prior to the Italian actor, Cohen was accused in a 2019 'Huffington Post' report of allegedly sexually assaulting an unnamed victim while she was unconscious. The reported assault occurred in 2015 after Cohen invited the woman for a business meeting in Manhattan to discuss a TV pilot.
The filmmaker faced similar charges from his daughter Valkyrie Weather, who accused him of molesting her when she was a child. Weather also accused Cohen of taking her to visit sex workers in overseas shooting locations when she was a teen.
Cohen, however, denied the allegations in both cases.
