PARIS — A French court acquitted filmmaker Roman Polanski on Tuesday of defaming a British actor whom he accused of lying after she alleged that he sexually assaulted her as a teenager.
The case stems from a 2019 interview with Paris Match magazine where Polanski accused Charlotte Lewis of ''a heinous lie'' for alleging that he raped her in the 1980s when she was 16.
The Paris court's ruling did not address the truth of the rape allegation but focused solely on whether the 90-year-old Polanski's comments in the interview constituted defamation against Lewis. Polanski denied the charges.
Lewis said she felt let down by the verdict and would appeal.
''I feel sad,'' she said. ''For us, it's not over.''
Polanski was not in court. His lawyer Delphine Meillet phoned him from the courtroom to announce the news, saying: ''We won, Roman.''
Speaking afterward to reporters, she said the court recognized his right to challenge people who make accusations against him. She noted that the verdict came on the opening day of the Cannes Film Festival, calling it ''a symbolic day.''
''The question that the court answered was whether you could defend yourself publicly when you are accused publicly. The answer is yes. You can challenge accusations, you can cast doubt on accusations,'' the lawyer said. ''It's a victory for the rights of the defense.''
