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Casey Affleck’s Oscars 2017 Nod Clouded By Sexual Harassment Claims

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 01:10 PST, Dec 20, 2016

Casey Affleck has a serious chance of getting an Oscar nod, according to the New York Post. But could sexual harassment allegations against the 41-year-old father-of-two actor get in the way of his Academy Awards nomination?

When Casey Affleck was presented with the Best Actor award at the New York Film Critics Circle, his chances of snatching an Oscar nod skyrocketed. Earlier, Ben Affleck’s brother also won the best actor award at the Gotham Awards.

But there’s one serious problem about Casey Affleck’s potential awards glory. And that is his reputation. In particular, it’s the sexual harassment accusations against him from two women that date back to 2010.

In a detailed story published by the Daily Beast, two women claimed that Casey Affleck manifested “sexually suggestive” and “predatory” behavior towards them while on the set of his 2010 film I’m Still Here.

That scandal nearly ruined Casey Affleck’s acting career. But while everybody seems to have forgotten about that case – just like they have forgotten about the existence of Ben Affleck’s kid brother – Casey Affleck resurfaced again in critically acclaimed film Manchester by the Sea.

But Casey Affleck didn’t just give a mediocre performance; he gave a brilliant performance that’s now being a serious contender for the Oscars next year, which is why he’s once again under scrutiny from the media. Affleck’s case could be very similar to Nate Parker’s situation from earlier this year.

Nate Parker was considered to be a serious contender for the Oscar for his superb performance in the film The Birth of a Nation. But his chances were reduced to zero when rape accusations from his past resurfaced in the media.

That was basically the end of Parker’s awards glory even though the actor was acquitted of all charges. The problem with Casey Affleck’s case is that he was never taken to court for the sexual harassment allegations.

Parker did everything he could to reduce the damage of the rape accusations: he had an open conversation about rape culture, he did go to court to prove his innocence – but still his fame has faded away, while his Academy Awards nod is no longer in the cards.

Casey Affleck, meanwhile, did quite the opposite. Ben Affleck’s younger brother has always avoided talking about the sexual harassment allegations, and he was never acquitted of the charges by the court. Instead, the actor denied the allegations and settled it out of court with both women.

Ever since then, Casey Affleck has stayed quiet about the allegations and only said “people say what they want” when one reporter asked him about his mysterious past. And everybody had forgotten about his past and stopped bugging him with questions about it, but then he resurfaced with a critically-acclaimed performance in Manchester by the Sea.

Although Casey Affleck had a few mediocre and supportive roles over the years, his brilliant performance in the Kenneth Lonergan-directed film truly stands out from the crowd. In the film, the 41-year-old actor plays Lee Chandler, a maintenance man who is forced to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy’s father dies, according to the Coronado Times.

Being that teenager’s guardian turns out to be not the easiest task for Casey Affleck’s character, who suffers from too much heartache of his own. Michelle Williams plays Randi Chandler, Lee’s former wife, who tries to reach out to her ex-husband.

Both Casey Affleck and Williams have offered superb performances in the film, and the two have serious chances to not only get an Oscar nod, but actually win that nod. That, of course, if sexual harassment accusations from Affleck’s past don’t get in the way.

[Featured Image by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images]

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