Award-Winning Green Book Has Many Seeing Red

Green Book racked up big wins at the Golden Globes on Sunday, including a best picture honor, but it's now making headlines for different reasons. USA Today reports the film had a "bad day" Wednesday, and the Cut reveals one issue: director Peter Farrelly used to "flash his penis as a joke." The site unearthed stories of what it calls "egregious sexual misconduct" in 1998 articles in Newsweek and the Observer, in which Farrelly admits he showed his privates "easily 500 times" as a joke. One notable quote from actress Cameron Diaz from Newsweek: "When a director shows you his penis the first time you meet him, you've got to recognize the creative genius." Farrelly doesn't deny the supposed prank, telling the Cut via his rep he was an "idiot" back then and "the truth is I'm embarrassed and it makes me cringe now. I'm deeply sorry."

More negative press involves co-writer Nick Vallelonga, also the son of the character played by Viggo Mortensen. Vallelonga has axed his Twitter account after a 2015 tweet bubbled up showing his support for Donald Trump's debunked claim of Muslims celebrating on 9/11. "100% correct," Vallelonga wrote in the now-vanished tweet (Deadline has a screenshot). "Muslims in Jersey City cheering when towers went down. I saw it, as you did, possibly on local CBS news." Vallelonga's manager confirms to BuzzFeed his client tweeted that. La La Land producer Jordan Horowitz called the post "disgusting," pointing out Green Book star Mahershala Ali is Muslim. Meanwhile, Variety reports on a third maelstrom around the film: backlash from the family of Don Shirley, the character portrayed by Ali, who won a Golden Globe for the role. Shirley's family has called the movie a "symphony of lies." (More Peter Farrelly stories.)