Italian actress Asia Argento has reportedly been dropped by ‘X Factor Italy’ after accusations that she sexually assaulted a teenager who appeared in a movie with her came to light.
The dramatic exit follows the recent bombshell that Argento paid former child actor and musician Jimmy Bennett a $380,000 settlement after he alleged that they had sex in a California hotel room in 2013. Bennett was 17 at the time, one year shy of the state’s legal age of consent, and Argento was 37.
Argento has been reportedly pulled from the live version of the talent show, which is scheduled to start airing on September 6. However, she will still appear in the first seven pre-recorded episodes that show Argento and her fellow judges select the show’s contestants through auditions, because otherwise they would’ve had to audition thousands of people all over again.
Argento’s ex-husband and Italian pop star Morgan is rumoured to be her replacement from October 25 when the live shows air. Neither Argento nor the show’s producers have yet commented on her removal.
In a statement released by Argento last week, she denied ever having “any sexual relationship” with Bennett, but did admit to the payout. The actress claimed it was her late boyfriend, Anthony Bourdain, who paid the fee on her behalf to end Bennett’s “long-standing persecution” of her.
Bennet once played Argento’s son in the movie she directed, called: ‘The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things’ in 2004, when he was seven years old.
READ MORE: Argento accuser Bennett speaks out over sex assault claims
Argento was one of the first to speak out against Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by more than 70 women in a groundbreaking revolt that sparked the global “Me Too” movement.
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