[1/4] The 80th Venice Film Festival - Photocall for the film "The Palace" out of competition - Venice, Italy, September 2, 2023. REUTERS/Yara Nardi Acquire Licensing RightsVENICE, Sept 2 (Reuters) - The producer of Roman Polanski's latest movie, "The Palace", bemoaned the fact that no one wanted the distribution rights for the film in the United States, Britain and France, saying morality should not weigh on art. One of the most successful directors of his generation, Polanski fled the United States over a conviction for raping a 13-year-old girl in 1977, a crime he admitted. After the #MeToo movement gained global traction in 2017 following sexual abuse allegations against U.S. film producer Harvey Weinstein, a number of women alleged that Polanski had sexually assaulted them as teenagers as well. The producer Luca Barbareschi said he had sold distribution rights across continental Europe, but not in France, Britain or the United States, despite the fact well-known actors from all three countries appeared in the film.

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Persons: Milan Peschel, Fortunato Cerlino, Fanny Ardant, Luca Barbareschi, Oliver Masucci, Joaquim de Almeida, Yara, Roman, Polanski, Harvey Weinstein, Mickey Rourke, John Cleese, Joaquim De Almeida, Barbareschi, Polanski's, Polanksi, Crispian Balmer, Ros Russell Organizations: REUTERS, U.S, Venice Film, Netflix, Golden, Thomson Locations: Venice, Italy, United States, Britain, France, Polish, Swiss, Europe, Australia, New Zealand