Bryan Singer Preemptively Refutes Alleged Forthcoming 'Negative' Article

Director Bryan Singer claims a) Esquire is planning to publish a “negative” article about him, and that b) it’s predicated on a “reckless disregard for the truth,” in a post he uploaded to Instagram on Monday.

A laundry list of allegations have been brought forth against Singer over the years, dating back to the 1997 filming of Apt Pupil, when the parents of 14-year-old extra Devin St. Albin sued Singer for allegedly filming their son naked without permission in a shower scene that featured other nude minors. According to Indiewire, other actors sued, but all cases were dismissed due to insufficient evidence.

More recently, a former aspiring actor named Cesar Sanchez-Guzman sued Singer in 2017, claiming that Singer raped him in 2003, when Guzman was 17. Singer’s attorney said the director “categorically denies” the claim. Singer was also accused of rape and sued by Michael F. Egan III (who was 17 at the time he was allegedly assaulted) in 2014, but the former child actor voluntarily dropped the suit soon after filing it. Singer characterized Egan’s claims as part of a “sick, twisted shakedown.” In his Instagram post, Singer linked to a Hollywood Reporter story about lawyer Jeff Herman being accused of rape. Herman was hired as Sanchez-Guzman’s and Egan’s lawyer.

Additionally, Singer references Bohemian Rhapsody as the peg for the allegedly forthcoming Esquire piece. “I am immensely proud of this film and everyone involved,” writes Singer. Last December, Singer was fired from the Freddie Mercury biopic, reportedly for repeated absences on set. (News of Singer’s firing broke days before news of Sanchez-Guzman’s lawsuit.) Though Singer was replaced by Dexter Fletcher, who completed the film, Singer has nonetheless received directing credit.

Regarding the supposed Esquire article, Variety reports: “A source close to Singer said the director will not be commenting for the article, which is written by Maximillian Potter.”