Woody Allen accuses Dylan Farrow of 'cynically' using Time's Up movement to attack him in extraordinary rebuke

Woody Allen has issued an extraordinary attack on his adoptive daughter Dylan Farrow and the rest of her family, claiming they are "cynically" using the Time's Up movement to seek revenge. 

Farrow used her first TV interview to repeat claims that the director sexually abused her as a child saying she hoped that appearing on camera would convince people she was telling the truth.

"He's lying and he's been lying for so long," Farrow told US network CBS.

In response, Allen issued a lengthy statement: "When this claim was first made more than 25 years ago... [investigators] found it likely a vulnerable child had been coached to tell the story by her angry mother during a contentious breakup.

"It seems to have worked – and, sadly, I'm sure Dylan truly believes what she says.

"But even though the Farrow family is cynically using the opportunity afforded by the Time's Up movement to repeat this discredited allegation, that doesn't make it any more true today than it was in the past. I never molested my daughter – as all investigations concluded a quarter of a century ago."

Allen, 82, has faced renewed questions over his alleged behaviour as he prepares for the release of his latest film in a Hollywood that is coming to grips with its history of sexual harassment and abuse.

In response to the slew of harassment allegations, actors and actresses have set up the 'Time's Up' movement, which includes legal funding to support alleged victims of sexual harassment, assault, or abuse in the workplace.