<figure id="attachment_239070" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 4252px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-239070"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="4c6f54cb"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2022/04/SH507232_r.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-239070" class="wp-caption-text">Sion Sono answered direct questions in front of his office in Tokyo.</figcaption></figure>
 There are many factual discrepancies in the reports. I would never say, &#8216;I have generally touched the leading actresses. I would never say, &#8216;I give jobs to the people I mess with. I believe that 99% of a film&#8217;s quality is determined by the quality of the actors in it. The people around me know how much importance I place on casting. There is no way that I would ever offer them a role in a movie and then press them into a physical relationship.&#8221;
In early April, film director Sion Sono, 60, told us this in a direct interview with this magazine. Sono is a man in the middle of a whirlwind of allegations of sexual assault.
 The April 5 issue of Shukan Josei (Weekly Woman) reported Sono&#8217;s allegations of sexual assault. The article includes testimony that Sono had said things such as, &#8220;I&#8217;ve touched most of the leading actresses,&#8221; &#8220;I&#8217;ve touched many actresses, but I give jobs to the ones I&#8217;ve touched,&#8221; and accusations from former actresses who say they were actually forced into indecent acts.
 Originally, Mr. Sono had lived together with an actress who appeared in one of his movies in the past, and he married Megumi Kagurazaka (40), an actress who also appeared in a movie. Because of this background, he came under fire, with many wondering if he had done it after all.
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Sono&#8217;s problems have drawn criticism from all over the place: on April 6, actress Yuriko Yoshitaka (33), who made her debut in one of Sono&#8217;s movies, wrote on her Twitter account, &#8220;Huh&#8230; I kind of didn&#8217;t want to hear his name in that case. People&#8230;not well,&#8221; etc. Another actress, Manami Hashimoto (37), who appeared in a drama directed by Sono, criticized him on an information program, saying, &#8220;The way he hit on her, &#8216;If you sleep with me, I&#8217;ll give you a job,&#8217; is also really lame.
On April 6, Sono published an apology on his office&#8217;s official website. However, this too was criticized for not apologizing to the victims. A person close to Sono in the movie industry said, &#8220;He has not apologized to the victims.
 He seems to have told those around him that he has no recollection of the testimony of the woman in the article who said that Sono forced her into a relationship with him. It seems that this is the reason why the apology did not include an apology to the victim.
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On the other hand, an image of a line marked &#8220;lick it,&#8221; etc., which Sono is believed to have sent to the woman, was also reported.
Is he going to let it slide without an &#8220;apology&#8221; to the victim? When this magazine&#8217;s reporter directly interviewed Sono as he came out from in front of his office in Tokyo, he replied, &#8220;I don&#8217;t think so.
 I am sure that when I was under the influence of alcohol, or when I was under pressure mentally due to my work as a supervisor, I may have hurt the other party by my unintentional remarks or e-mails. For that, I would like to sincerely apologize to the other party. I am going to stop drinking and having my own cell phone. However, I cannot overlook the many things that are not true about this article. I am considering taking action against the company that published the article, with a view to possible legal action.&#8221;
Sexual assault is not acceptable for any reason. As long as there are women who have claimed victimization, Mr. Sono must be held accountable.

 Shinji Hamasaki

 There are many factual discrepancies in the reports," he said. I would never say, 'I've had my hands on most of the leading actresses. I would never say, 'I give jobs to the ones I mess with. I think the quality of a film is

Sion Sono opens his mouth for the first time in direct response to this magazine

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