A French actor has accused a director 25 years her senior of manipulating her into a relationship as a teenager, contributing to criticism that the arts have provided cover for abuse.

Judith Godreche, 51, said this weekend on Instagram that director Benoit Jacquot took advantage of her as a vulnerable underage actor. …

“Consent does not exist when you’re 14,” she said. “I wasn’t seduced, I was completely manipulated.”

[Great, and kudos to Mme Godreche for speaking out. Now France needs to account for Roman Polanski, who raped and sodomized a 13-year-old girl and got defended not just by France (who sheltered him) but also Hollywood. Godreche isn’t the first woman in France to demand an accounting for grooming and abuse as an adolescent by the cultural elites, and the problem extended into Germany too. But it’s long past time that Polanski gets his due in a Los Angeles courtroom. — Ed]