Woody Allen on Rubiales kiss: Spain's double standards

Woody Allen: "The kiss was wrong, but it didn't burn down a school"

A public kiss moved more institutional machinery than a fire would have, and Woody Allen highlighted this asymmetry from Venice. The director, 87 years old with 50 films, was presenting his latest work, Coup de Chance, when he told El Mundo on September 3, 2023, that kissing the footballer was inappropriate but comparable to no major disaster. His other widely quoted remark: "It is hard to imagine someone losing their job for giving a kiss in public." In Spain, weeks had been spent discussing little else, and the filmmaker put the issue into perspective. It is ironic that the season's sarracena arbiter is an octogenarian who checks Cairo time on his phone for entertainment.

What did Woody Allen say about the Rubiales case?

He made two clear points: the kiss was wrong, the person responsible should apologize and move on, and it is difficult to conceive of anyone losing their job over a public kiss. The rest of the interview with the Madrid newspaper trinc the same line. The director boasts of reaching film number 50—joking that he has finally become a French filmmaker—admits he dislikes cameras and computers, and states that after his death, people can do whatever they want with his movies, even burn them. Many readers concluded that the kiss was trivial and the interview itself was rambling.

Using biography to dismiss the message

This is where the noise begins. During the week his comments circulated, many reactions shifted to his private life and the sensual abuse allegations by Dylan Farrow, which have never been proven in court and which he has always denied. His marriage to Soon-Yi Previn, Mia Farrow's adopted daughter—adopted at 14 or 15 years old and never legally his child—has lasted over three decades and remains the preferred argument to discredit anything he says. Conversely, some note that the relationship began when she was already in university and that no court has found him guilty; others argue that none of this changes whether an unconsented kiss should cost someone their job.

Burning a school: the uncomfortable comparison

The school analogy acts as an uncomfortable mirror. Critics argue that the institutional reaction to an unconsented kiss was faster and harsher than to issues with far greater economic impact. They point out that while headlines focused on the kiss, inflation, oil prices, gasoline costs, unemployment, and business bankruptcies continued without demanding accountability. Political figures also weighed in: Cuca Gamarra (PP) called the federation president's behavior shameful and demanded his resignation, as did Yolanda Díaz, highlighting the contradiction of those who claim to vote PP yet support Rubiales. An unverified claim circulates that €70,000 in public funds financed the organization behind the protests.

From the kiss to the 2024 Budgets

The issue intersects with another unrelated topic gaining traction: the processing of the General State Budgets for 2024. It is argued that the government abusa the Organic Law on Budgetary Stability and Financial Sustainability, whose Article 11.3 exceptionally allows the state and autonomous communities to incur structural deficits. In short: while a kiss is debated, the budget discussion proceeds with little focus. This happens when the main story loses steam.

One question remains open: if the kiss was wrong, as Allen says, and the reaction was proportionate, why did the conversation end up focusing on Mia Farrow, the Budgets, and sunflower oil instead of the kiss?